


The One That Mattered Most

by LeHummingbird



Category: Glee
Genre: Drama & Romance, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Family Drama, Family Issues, Friendship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-28
Updated: 2017-02-12
Packaged: 2018-03-19 23:27:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 33,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3628221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeHummingbird/pseuds/LeHummingbird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post Glee Finale. Dedicated to all my fellow Samchel shippers, hoping you all find the creativity to share your beautiful stories :)<br/>What if Rachel's life wasn't as perfect as it seemed to be after all? What secrets might be discovered and how is she able to handle that?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The beginning of the end

**The one that mattered most**

 

Looking at the peaceful, sleeping face of the beautiful two-year old child made Rachel smile. She softly caressed his dark blonde hair and placed a light kiss on his forehead.

"Sleep well my little prince", she whispered. She left the door slightly open and went to the living room, where her husband was sitting. When he heard her entering the room, he looked up to her.

 

"Is he finally sleeping?" He asked, letting her hear a slightly annoyed undertone in his voice.

"Yes he is asleep. Is something bothering you, Jesse?" Rachel said, taking a seat next to him.

Jesse took a deep breath, slightly shaking his head. "It's fine Rachel, I am heading to bed."

She knew he wasn't alright, they weren't alright.

When they got married almost four years ago she had been genuinely happy. She thought she had finally found her piece of happiness. Jesse understood her, he knew they way she was ticking. They both were so similar in their personalities, that being with Jesse was easy. Easy - that was really what it was.  It was when she decided to become a surrogate for Kurt and Blaine, it wasn't easy anymore. Jesse wanted to have children himself, he wanted to have children with Rachel and he wasn't fond of the idea of her being a surrogate. Jesse, however did respect Rachel's choice and tried to be happy for Kurt and Blaine. It was only when Rachel gave birth and she wanted to be a part of that little boys life, that easy became complicated.

The three of them, the three being Rachel, Kurt and Blaine, decided to share custody for their baby. For the first few weeks they were inseparable and spending as much time as possible together. It hadn't even taken four weeks until Kurt and Blaine bought the house next door from Jesse and Rachel and moved. Since the little boy had been born Jesse felt left out. He wanted to start his own family with Rachel, he didn't want his wife's and someone else's child.

It had taken Rachel months until she realized that Jesse wasn't happy. She had been in such a wonderful place with her odd family situation, that she became oblivious to her husband's worries. She had tried to make it up to Jesse and they had started to plan their own children, but even after almost two years Rachel was still not pregnant again. With the time passing the rift between Jesse and Rachel became bigger, but they never talked about it. It was like the big elephant in the room, everybody seemed to ignore.

The mood between Jesse and Rachel always seem to worsen, whenever her son came to visit.

 

Rachel let out a deep sigh. She didn't know what to do anymore. Once Jesse was so ideal for her, so easy to live and deal with, but now it wasn't easy anymore. Now it was just difficult.

 

After a while sulking by herself, Rachel decided to go to sleep as well. She quickly changed in to a tank top and some pyjama shorts and followed her daily facial cleaning routine, before slipping under the blankets next to Jesse.

"Hey", he whispered, when he felt the bed shift.

"Hey", she softly said, "you are still up?"

"Yeah." He was lying on his stomach, turning his face towards her. He placed his hand on her cheek and softly stroke it with his thumb.  He moved closer to her, pressing a kiss onto her lips. She smiled softly. Jesse robbed closer to his wife, his hand wandering to her waist. His lips pressing kisses on her neck. She felt his fingers playing with the hem of her top until they went underneath and caressed her stomach. When she felt his hand on her breast, she slightly pushed him away.

"Jesse stop. Dalton is next door." She pushed his hand from her and then turned his back to Jesse.

"I am going to sleep Jesse. Good night." She could hear her husband sigh. She knew he was frustrated, but they wouldn't talk about it - they never did. They always avoided conflict.

 

****

 

It must had been the middle of the night, when Rachel woke up from a whimpering noise coming from the baby monitor next to her bed. She quickly got up and went into her son's room. Dalton was sitting in the middle of his baby bed, clutching his stuffed rabbit close to him. Tears in his eyes he was looking to Rachel, when she entered the room.

"Mommy..." he whimpered, reaching out one of his arms towards her.

"Hello baby, what is wrong?" She said, taking him out of the bed and hugging him tightly. She pressed a kiss on his hair, while she was softly rocking him in her arms.

"monster..." He mumbled into her shoulder.

"A monster? Do you want mommy to look if there is a monster in your room, baby?" Rachel asked her son softly. Dalton shook his head forcefully. "No. Sleep with mommy." He said instead. Rachel chuckled softly.

"Okay, you can sleep in mommy's bed tonight." She carefully caressed her sons back, while slowly walking to her bedroom. She carefully lay down onto the bed with her son and they soon fell into a deep slumber.

 

***

It had been the late afternoon of the next day, when Blaine came to pick up Dalton.

"Dada!!" Dalton yelled in delighted surprised and ran towards Blaine.

"Hey buddy! I missed you" Blaine said, taking Dalton in his arms and spinning him around. "Hey Rach!" He kissed her on the cheek, after he carefully put Dalton down again.

"Blaine, come on in! Where is Kurt?" She asked.

"He is still in Lima", Blaine replied. He and Kurt had been in Lima for the weekend, while Dalton stayed with Rachel and Jesse. The visit was no happy occasion, so they decided to leave Dalton at home.

"Oh, how are Carol and Burt? Are they okay?" Rachel asked, knowing that Kurt must had stayed back for their sake. It was Finn's death anniversary and Carol still suffered from the loss of her son. Rachel had loved Finn once, in fact a part of her still loved the handsome quarterback, who she wanted to marry all those years back. At first she had felt bad for trying to move on, but eventually she did. It was Sam who had helped her, who had healed her heart. Sam was the one, who was approved by Carol and Burt. Sam was the one who had mended her broken heart. Sam was not here. She had left him for the sake of going to New York and Jesse.

 

"Burt is fine. The doctors are happy with him, very much to Kurt's relief. Carol.. well you know how she is. She still suffers a lot during the days around Finn's anniversary. Kurt said he wanted to spent some mother son quality time with her. He will be back the day after tomorrow."

 

"That's nice of him. They always had a good relationship and I am sure she will be happy to have some time with him. It will be good for her, keeps her mind away from Finn."

 

"Absolutely. She was however sad Dalton didn't join, but she understood." Blaine said. "Next time you will join us buddy, right?" Blaine looked at his son, who was very interested into playing with his lego.

 

"He is in his zone." Rachel chuckled looking at her son.

"That he is!" Blaine said.

 

They were observing their son for awhile, when Blaine looked at Rachel again.

"So, where is that husband of yours, Rachel?"

 

"Jesse? He went out to meet some people for his new project. Since Jane Austen Sings just had its last performance, he is throwing himself back into work." She said.

  
"Oh really? I thought the musical was being picked up in Chicago and London?" Blaine said crouching his eyebrows.

 

"Yes, but he is not producing those. He is involved as advisor, but he is working on his own new projects."

 

"So do you have any new projects coming up? Or are you enjoying a short break from Broadway?" Blaine said, knowing that Rachel Berry could never really take a break from Broadway.

 

"Well to be honest Blaine, I am going to take a short break from Broadway. Jesse and I were trying for a baby for a while now, as you know. I think it just didn't work out, because we were both so busy with work. So I was speaking to Carmen the other day..." Rachel started.

 

"Carmen? As in Carmen Tibideaux?" Blaine interrupted surprised.

 

"That's the one!" Rachel replied. "Well I was speaking to her and she offered me to co supervise a vocal class at NYADA. I figured that would be a good way to have a little bit more time with Jesse, while still keeping my voice in perfect condition."

 

"That is amazing Rachel! Congratulations, I am so happy for you!" Blaine replied, hugging her.

 

"Thank you. I didn't accept yet though. I wanted to discuss it with Jesse first. Also I wanted to take some time off and visit my fathers. There is so much I want to do, since I have some time now. I love Broadway, but it can be exhausting." Rachel Berry did indeed love Broadway, that is where her heart was, but it was a hard business. She had too little time and too many responsibilities, especially now with her son.

 

"Well whatever your choice is, Kurt and I will always support you. You know that right?"

  
"Thank you Blaine!"

 

***

 

Blaine had stayed for dinner, as he was tired from his trip and didn't feel like cooking anymore. Jesse was staying out late, so the two friends shared a friendly dinner with their son.

 

When Blaine had left, he intended to bring his son to bed and relax on the sofa with a good glass of wine. It was when Dalton had fallen asleep and Blaine was watching him, that he couldn't ignore the little voice in his head anymore. He had this feeling for some time now and yesterday he felt almost confirmed in his suspicion. Blaine let out a deep sigh, caressed the dark blonde hair of his son and left the room. His son, Dalton Samuel Anderson-Hummel, was the most beautiful creature to him. When Rachel decided to become a surrogate for them, they didn't know who's sperm would father their child, but now Blaine wasn't sure if neither him or Kurt had fathered their child.

Neither of them had dark blonde hair or green eyes, nor his most prominent feature: his full lips.

 

Blaine took a deep breath and sat down onto the sofa, taking out his mobile phone.

He dialled a very familiar number and listened to the familiar ring.

"Blaine? What's up? Did you had a good flight home?" The voice at the other end answered.

 

"Hey, yes thanks. I was wanting to ask you for a favour."

"Sure, what can I do for you?"

"Could you send me that picture of you, when you were little? The one that I saw today? I am working on a project of how people looked now and then." Blaine said.

"Uhm sure. Wait, I'll just make a photo and app it to you in a second!"

"Great, thank you!" Blaine said and hung up. It took only a couple of seconds until his phone vibrated and he received the picture he had asked for.

The picture he saw, was a picture of his friend - he knew that - but if he wouldn't have known that, he could have sworn that it was a picture of his son.


	2. Chapter 2

"Blaine? Blaine are you here?" Kurt yelled, when he entered the front door. He had stayed three days longer in Lima than originally planned. He was glad he did, as he really did enjoy the time with Carol and his dad. Still, as great as it was, he had missed his boys terribly.

"Kurt, is that you?" Blaine replied, head popping out of the kitchen looking towards the entrance.  
"Did you expect anyone else?" Kurt replied amused, setting his bag on the floor. He walked toward his husbands who was busy preparing lunch.

"Welcome home, we missed you Kurt!" Blaine said, kissing his husbands cheek.

"I missed you too." Kurt replied, smiling at his husband. Dalton was drawing idly at the kitchen table and as soon as he saw Kurt, he jumped of his seat.

"Papi!" He exclaimed happily and ran as fast as he could towards Kurt, hugging his leg.  
"Well hello there, my little pea. Have you been a good boy? Papi missed you!" Kurt said taking his son of the ground to hug him. He placed a kiss on his sons cheek, who beamed at Kurt.

"Papi, miss you too!" Dalton said. "Papi, Dada and Mommy and I go to visit the penwins."

"The penguins? Are you going to the zoo today?" Kurt asked, looking at Blaine. Blaine nodded only at Kurt and took a look at his watch.

"Yes! Penwins!" Dalton said nodding fiercely. "Papi come too!"

"I am just making some Sandwiches Kurt. We will pick up Rachel in a minute. Do you want to join us? The weather is so nice today and Dalton loves to go and see the penguins." Blaine said, carefully placing some cucumber sandwiches into a plastic container. 

"Sure, why not. Do I have time to freshen up really quick?" Kurt asked, while placing Dalton on the ground.

"If you manage in 15 minutes, than yes." Blaine replied, while washing cutting some mango for the fruit salad he was currently preparing. Kurt just smiled and quickly went upstairs to their bedroom, to change into some fresh clothes.

15 minutes later the Anderson-Hummel family was all ready to leave.

"Okay, all ready?" Blaine asked, mentally ticking his list of things he had to take.

"You got the food and the stroller, I have our son - we only need Rachel." Kurt said, while opening the door.

"Let's pick up mommy Dalton!" Kurt smiled at his son and hopped down the three stairs from his house. He then stopped in front of Rachel's and Jesse's bell and let Dalton push the bell, as he loved doing that. The eyes of the little boy sparkled of joy, when the noise of the bell rang.  
Moments later Rachel opened the door with a big smile on her face.

"Hey baby! Mommy missed you!" Rachel exclaimed kissing Dalton.  
"Kurt you are back!" She then said, hugging her best friend.

"Hey Diva! I just arrived, hope you don't mind if I join you guys to the zoo."

"The more the merrier! I am happy you are back. Aren't you happy Papi is back baby?" Rachel said tickling her sons stomach. Dalton giggled joyfully and nodded happily.

"Penwins!"

Kurt and Rachel laughed. Rachel closed the door and together they went down the few steps of her house to meet Blaine. 

"Okay looks like we are all set." Kurt said looking at his husband and Rachel.

"Yes let's go!" Blaine replied, hailing a taxi.

***

After a short drive they arrived at Central Park. They had decided to visit the Central Park Zoo today, instead of the bigger Bronx Zoo. Since moving to New York Rachel had always loved Central Park. When she moved in with Jesse about 6 years ago they had lived on the upper east side within walking distance of Central Park. When they got married however they wanted to have more space and moved to Brooklyn. Since then she didn't manage to go as often as she liked too to Central Park, as it was unfortunately a little far from her home.

She was going to enjoy today's day with her two best friends and their baby boy.  
When the cab left them at the entrance of Central Park, Blaine put Dalton into the stroller and buckled him up.  
They leisurely walked towards Central Park Zoo, enjoying the sunny spring breeze of this wonderful day in May.

They had been walking through the zoo for an hour, when they finally arrived at Dalton's highlight - the penguin house. While Kurt took the liberty to take Dalton into his arms and approach the penguin habitat as close as possible, Blaine and Rachel stayed back, watching them.

"So Rachel, I was meaning to show you something", Blaine started. Since he had received that picture, he was arguing with himself how and when to approach Rachel with it. He was wondering, if he should tell Kurt about it, but Blaine figured there would never be a right time and maybe there was a plausible explanation. An explanation where Kurt did not need to know anything about the situation, because it was a weird coincidence and there were no consequences. Oh the consequences, could there be any? Would there be any? Blaine had a million scenarios in his mind, how this could end and he was feeling desperate.  
In the end he realized, he would just have to do it and now was as good as any time.

"What is it?" Rachel inquired.  
Blaine took a deep breath and took out his mobile, where he had the picture saved. He unlocked his phone and opened the picture to show it to Rachel.

"Oh how adorable. I didn't know you guys went with Dalton to the beach, Blaine!" Rachel said, smiling at the picture of her son.

Blaine gave her an intense look and Rachel looked at him questioningly.  
"Blaine? Everything alright?" She asked, wondering why he didn't say anything. It wasn't as if she would be upset, that Kurt and Blaine had taken Dalton to the beach. Yes - it was weird, that they wouldn't have said anything, but it wouldn't be an issue.

"We haven't been to the beach with Dalton." Blaine simply said. Rachel looked at him puzzled.  
"You are just showing me a picture of him at the beach, Blaine!" Rachel said confused. Obviously she was looking at a photo of her son - at the beach.

"Rachel." Blaine said, looking at her sternly. "Rachel, this is not Dalton."  
"Don't be ridiculous Blaine, of course this is Dalton, who else should it be?" Rachel started to become incredibly irritated. What was Blaine doing? Was he trying to pull a prank on her? She really didn't feel like it was funny, at all. So what the heck was happening?

"Rachel, this is not Dalton." Blaine repeated. He sighed heavily. "This is a photo of Sam. As in Sam Evans."


	3. Chapter 3

It had been three days since Blaine had confronted Rachel with the picture of Sam; the picture she thought was Daltons. When he had told her, she was speechless. She didn't know what to say or what to think, except that it couldn't be true, or? She and Sam had broken up when she left for New York and since then they hadn't seen each other much. Once, maybe twice.

Rachel had excused herself, needing time for herself. Time to think.  
She couldn't wrap her head around this, how could it be that Dalton looked exactly like Sam? Or rather two-year old Sam exactly like Dalton?  
Well there was the obvious reason, but they had broken up and she was already married with Jesse, when she decided to be a surrogate. She hadn't been with Sam ever since.  
Maybe it was just a really weird mix up and maybe Sam donated sperm and accidentally she was inseminated with his instead of Blaine's or Kurt's?

'Yes, right Rachel... try being realistic and not lunatic...' She thought and grimacing at herself in the mirror.  
She sighed and got up to let herself in a hot bath. Luckily Jesse was in Chicago for a couple of days, to supervise the production of Jane Austen Sings, so she was by herself, trying to sort out how she got into this mess.

When the bathtub was filled with hot water and loads of foam, Rachel poured herself a glass of white wine, lit some scented candles and let her bathrobe fall to the ground. She slowly entered the hot water and immediately relaxed.  
She closed her eyes for a moment and laid her head back. Rachel was at the end of her wits and she really needed to talk to someone. She couldn't speak to her two closest friends for obvious reasons. She certainly didn't feel comfortable to speak about this with her husband, also for obvious reasons, plus they anyways became more and more estranged lately. So, who could she talk to? Who was there who would understand her, be still kind of no nonsense and still didn't judge her?  
There was one obvious choice for Rachel and she sighed, as she knew this wouldn't be a pretty conversation.

She took her phone and speed dialled the one number of the only person in the world, who could give her everything she needed (and probably also everything she certainly didn't want to) hear.

"Well, well, well, if that isn't one Rachel Berry. What's up Berry?" The well known voice of Santana Lopez came through the phone.

"Santana, hi." Rachel replied. For a moment it was quiet and Santana knew right away something was wrong. Rachel and Santana always had a complicated relationship. They hated each other in High School, they became roommates and close friends in New York, they started to despise and hate each other again, after both of them pulled some shit and then they became something like friends again. They had realised they were good for each other, very good friends in fact, however they only worked in small doses with lots of distance between them. They met once or twice a year for a couple of days and that was more than enough for the remainder of the year.

"Spill the beans Rachel, what's wrong?" Santana said, sensing something must be wrong. To be honest, Santana was very surprised when she had gotten Rachel's call, they rarely talked on the phone. When they did something really good or something really bad had happened. She was pretty sure this phone call fell into the latter category.

"I think I screwed up." Rachel admitted . She did, didn't she?

"Well nothing new there. I mean you married Jesse St. Sleezeball, got your son named after a damn school and I never get to see you.. .so yeah. Newsflash Berry, I knew that already." Santana said, having a regular sarcastic voice. Rachel could literaly see Santana roll her eyes.   
"But seriously Rachel, what happened?" Santana asked more softly, slowly feeling worried about the other girl. She didn't know what was happening or what was wrong with her, but she sounded desperate.

"Dalton he.. Blaine thinks... oh my god Santana what am I going to do?" Rachel felt all the desperation and confusion rushing down on her. It suddenly dawned to her, how much pain she must have caused. What if Kurt would ever find out? What if Blaine and Kurt would never want to see her again? What would Jesse say? What would her parents say? And oh my god, what would Sam say? What would Sam do, if he realized that he had a son?   
Rachel felt if someone had dumped a bucket of ice cold water onto her head.

"Whoa calm down Rach, take a deep breath. What is wrong with Dalton? And what is happening with Blaine?" Santana tried to calm her friend down. She was sitting on the edge of her sofa with a worried Brittany looking at her.

"Blaine showed me a photo", Rachel began slowly, "and I thought it was Dalton."

"Okay, so what is wrong with that?" Santana replied.

"It wasn't a photo of Dalton, Santana. It was.." Rachel stopped, she couldn't say it. If she said it out loud, it would be as if she admitted it really was the truth and that couldn't be, right? She was Rachel Berry, she was not some major screw up. She was not someone who betrayed her husband, had a child with someone else and gave it away to her best friends, because they thought she was their surrogate mother.

"It was who? Come on Rachel, spill. You are making me nervous here!" Santana said, starting to feel annoyed. She was discussing with herself, if she should just make the four hour drive from Boston to New York and visit her friend. She had a feeling Rachel needed her.

"Santana what am I going to do?" Rachel finally said. She couldn't bring herself to say it was a photo of Sam. She just couldn't.

Santana sighed. She knew this conversation was not going anywhere. Rachel would just keep muttering some nonsense and Santana would get upset with her. One look at Brit, who simply nodded encouragingly told her there was only one solution.

"Listen up Berry, I will be there in four hours."

***

About five hours later Santana and Brittany had finally reached Rachel's house. The traffic was worse than expected, but they made it.

While Brit was settling into the guest room, Santana and Rachel went to sit in the den and talk.

"So you look like a mess. What is happening?" Santana started, eyeing her friend suspiciously.

"I don't know Santana. Blaine showed me this picture and I thought it was Dalton, but it wasn't him." Rachel sputtered.

"Right, you told me that part already like three times. So who was this picture from? Do you have that picture?" Santana asked.  
Rachel nodded slightly and took her phone out to show Santana the picture. Blaine had forwarded the picture to her, demanding answers. Other than texting they hadn't seen or heard of each other much. She had told Kurt that she was feeling sick and probably had the flu, so it would be better if they wouldn't see each other in a while - just to make sure Dalton wouldn't catch anything of course.  
Blaine had promised her not to say anything to Kurt for the time being, but he wanted and needed to talk. He, however, accepted that Rachel may needed some time - still he told her they couldn't keep this charade up forever.

"That totally looks like Dalton." Santana said. Seeing the picture really didn't help her at all.

"Oh wow, what a cute picture of Sam!" Brittany exclaimed, suddenly appearing behind Santana.

"Woah what? Sam? Brit why would you think that is Sam?" Santana asked her wife. Part of her thought she must be confused, but the other part of her knew Brit had some kind of genius most people didn't understand - including her sometimes.

"Well, duh. Look it's his green eyes and his lips, they are so soft. Have you ever touched Sam's lips? They are like marshmallows.", Brit said. "Also I have a childhood picture of him!" Brittany took out her phone and looked for one of the pictures she had made at Sam's place once.

"OH MY GOD! Rachel, spill!" Santana demanded, looking from one picture to the other.

"I don't know!" Rachel exclaimed, putting her head into her hands.   
"I really don't know Santana. Sam and I broke up, I moved to New York, I married Jesse and I got pregnant five years after I broke up with Sam. There is no way Dalton can be Sam's!"

"Well maybe Sam and you had mind sex and that got you knocked up." Brit said, thinking that would be a very logical explanation.

"Right. Listen Rachel, obviously you must have had sex with trouty mouth on some point, before you decided to become a surrogate for the pretty ponies. So did you see Sam about three years ago?" Santana asked, thinking back herself, if she could remember anything.

"No when would I have seen Sam? Three years ago, I haven't left New York in the last three years! And Sam didn't come to visit!"

"You went to Lord and Lady Tubbingtons third wedding three years ago. You know they got divorced again. Lord Tubbington started a religious cult and Lady Tubbington was really upset. But he told me they are making up again."

"That's right, three years ago you actually seen Trouty - for a wedding even. Puck and Quinn tied the knot, remember? You came alone because Jesse was well I don't know and don't really care where and Ladyface and his husband were on vacation." Santana said. "You and Sam were awfully close, if I remember correctly - not that I kept tabs on you. I probably should have."

It suddenly dawned on Rachel that she was very, very upset when she went to Noah's and Quinn's wedding. Jesse had not been on a business trip, as she had told everyone. She and Jesse had a terrible fight and hadn't talked in three days when she had left to go to Lima. She couldn't remember anymore why they fought, but it had happened unfortunately quite often back then.

Sam was there to cheer her up. Sam had always been there to cheer her up. He always knew what to do to cheer her up. That evening she had wondered, why she had broken things off with Sam, because he was really good to her. Back then she was selfish and to ignorant to see, that he wanted only the best for her. Rachel, however, had broken things off with Sam because he didn't agree with her about going back to Broadway. He wanted her to take her second chance with NYADA. In the end she had done as Sam suggested, but it was too late or maybe just not the right time to mend their differences - or rather their or better her stupid reason to break up.

Hot lips tracing down her delicate neckline. Lips leaving soft butterfly kisses. Hands gently tracing the sides of her beautiful body. His fingers softly moving up her stomach, his lips nibbling her earlobe. Soft moans, aroused gasps, it was like music in his ears. He let out a soft chuckle, before capturing her mouth. Her lips were soft, his were rough. The careful soft movements of their lips, perfect for each other, slowly became more certain, bolder, fiercer, more passionate. Desperate for trying to deepen the kiss he pulled her closer. His tongue tracing her lips, asking for a more intimate connection. Her lips were slightly opening, allowing him to playfully pull her lower lip. Her hands were moving into his hair, trying to pull him closer. Needing him closer. Wanting him closer.  
He put his hand on her cheek, stroking her with his thumb, intensifying their kiss even more. It felt like an eternity, when his lips left hers. Gasping for oxygen, their lips found themselves over and over again, not being able to be apart from each other.  
She let out a desperate moan, when his lips moved over her shoulder to her chest. He was kissing the tender flesh of her breasts, teasing her sensitive nipples, making her moan out of pleasure.  
He let out a soft chuckle, proud of himself for still knowing her body so well.  
His fingers were wandering over her exposed body, finding their way down to her stomach. They went down to her tights, leaving the feeling of electric jolts, wherever they touched her.  
"Sam..." She moaned, needing him, wanting him.

He let out another chuckle and just looked at her for a moment. She was so beautiful to him, her cheeks all flush, her hair a wild mess. She looked at him, confused, aroused and definitely not wanting him to stop what he was doing, when she really wanted him to continue. She was whimpering, her lower lip shivering, from wanting him so much.  
He smiled and bent down to kiss her once again.  
Suddenly she gasped, her eyes widening from unexpected pleasure and shock. His fingers had found their way between her legs, touching her most sensitive spot.

"Saaam..." Her fingers clawed herself into his shoulders.

"Yes Rachel?" He whispered, a devilish smile on his face. He stopped with every of his moves, waiting for her response.  
She let out a frustrated moan, breathing heavily.  
"Sam... stop teasing.." she finally said, trying to pull him closer. Sam just laughed at her, playing with her hair, placing a kiss on her forehead.  
"What do you want me to do, babe?" He whispered into her ear, softly biting her earlobe and letting his hand wander back to her waist.  
She knew that he was playing a game with her, wanting her to admit that she wanted him, needed him. She felt ashamed for just wanting to shout it out, because she felt so desperate, but she didn't. Her look went down to her blankets, finally whispering: "Make love to me.."  
He grabbed her chin, looking at her intensely, smiling and kissing her. He intensified the kiss, putting as much passion and emotion into it, as possible.

He could feel her fingers suddenly clawing his back, her back aching, when he had suddenly, without warning pushed himself inside her. Her legs wrapped themselves around him, trying to pull him deeper, to feel him deeper. They fell into a comfortable rhythm, enjoying themselves.  
"Sam..." she sighed, looking at him lovingly. This was so much more than just sex. This was so wrong. Rachel knew this was to intimate to be just meaningless sex between friends. This was not lust, this was romance - this was wrong. She was married, happily - and yet she was lying here with another men between her legs and it felt good, it felt right.

"It was at the wedding", Rachel finally said, flushing while thinking back at that one time, she had slept with Sam. She had tried to forget her little tête-a-tête to Sam, in fact she had buried it so deep in her memory, that she had almost genuinely forgotten about it. Well okay, maybe not forgotten, but you know how denial works, right? When she had gotten pregnant, she hadn't even wasted a thought on Sam, because she knew she was being a surrogated and had been inseminated with the sperm of her two best friends. Unfortunately it had been already too late then, she had already been pregnant with Sam's child.

"We were drunk. I had a fight with Jesse and he comforted me", Rachel continued. She put her hand towards her mouth, realizing the damage she had caused. Realizing the real issues, that were coming ahead. Kurt would hate her, Blaine wouldn't speak to her anymore. She might lose the rights to see Dalton. Was that legal? Would they fight about their child? What would Sam say? Would she have to tell Sam? Rachel didn't know. She felt desperate.


	4. Chapter 4

Sam Evans was trying to figure out what to do with his life. For the past couple of years he had been teaching the glee club at William McKinley High School of Performing Arts. While he had always enjoyed working as a glee club teacher he was not an actual teacher per se. He didn't go to college, he did not study. At first he was simply happy with what he was doing, but over the years he felt something missing. Looking at his friends getting married, having children made him realize, that maybe he was missing something in his life.  
Sure, Sam had plenty of relationships, but nothing was really serious. In his life there were two women who had bewitched him, one way or the other. Mercedes had his heart for a long time and Sam had loved her. They had tried to be together more than once, in fact they had tried three times. Unfortunately it never worked out and Mercedes eventually got married two years ago. He was happy for her. He knew Mercedes' husband was good for her, the way she was glowing when he was with her, was simply wonderful.

The other woman that had bewitched Sam was Rachel Berry. His and Rachels relationship was short, but it was full of passion, it was full of mutual understanding and support. They were good for each other, but in the end she had chosen someone else and left.  
They had pretended they had agreed on their break out, knowing there was no future for them, with Sam being in Lima and Rachel going to New York. He had pretended that he was happy for her, when she got married. He had pretended that he was sorry, that he had suddenly fallen sick and was unable to attend to her wedding. He had pretended to really wanting to visit her in her newlywed home and meet her husband. He had pretended to be sorry, whenever he had to cancel his plans of coming to New York. He had pretended to not loving her anymore and he had already failed convincing his own heart.  
He didn't want to admit it, but there were still those lingering feelings he had for Rachel Berry. And to be honest, that night they had three years ago really didn't help closing the chapter of one Rachel Berry. In fact that night three years ago, made him think he might still have a shot.  
He knew she still cared about him, he knew she still had feelings for him. He felt it, the way she was looking at him, they way she had kissed him, the way her heart was beating. But that was three years ago, one night. He had messaged her afterwards, he had tried to call her, but she had ignored him.  
It had hurt, it still did. Sam knew she was married and he certainly didn't want to be a home wrecker, but would Rachel had been like this if everything with Jesse was candy and butterflies? Certainly not.  
He had tried to forget her, but it was difficult.  
He dated frequently and he wasn't exactly choosy. Some might call him nasty words, but Sam decided to ignore them.

Currently he was dating Gina, or was it Dina? Well it didn't really matter, since Sam got sick of her already. She didn't had any sparkle, she wasn't special. She wasn't Rachel.

Women troubles were his last problems at the moment. Currently he was playing with a one way flight ticket in his hands. He remembered that talk he had with Mr. Shue the other day.

"Sam, have a seat!" Will said, taking a seat in his office.  
"Thanks." Sam said and sat down. He had spent a lot of his time in this office, but he had never summoned by Will before. Usually Will always approached him personally, if something was happening. They were close friends and Sam even became the godfather of Will's youngest daughter Dahlia. Still, at work they always were professional and this situation made him feel a bit uneasy.

"So Sam, you coached the New Directions for the last six years and you did a great job. We won nationals three more times and were runner ups the other three times. I couldn't have done it better. I am so proud of you and really want to say thank you." Will said smiling widely at Sam. He was so proud of that boy, who grew up to a skilled leader.

"Thank you. But you wouldn't have called me in here, just to thank me right?" While Sam used to be a little slow in his younger years, he did some growing up. The time he had spent with Rachel gave him confidence not to see him as the stupid kid, some people thought he was. The biggest influence on his personal development probably came from Will, who helped Sam with his dyslexia and supported him as good as he could.

"You are right. Sam you started working here, when I needed you. I am really grateful for the time you invested here and for everything you have done for us. Still you are only a glee coach, a good one, but just being a coach is not being a teacher, a title you really earned here. I can't make you an official teacher because of my good will, but I can give you an opportunity."

"I am not sure, I understand what you are trying to say?" Sam looked at Will confused.

"I am saying I want you to become an actual teacher. Look, I pulled a few strings with the superintendent and with a friend of mine, who teaches at a university. Since you already spent so much time coaching the glee club, they would credit your time and offered that if you could pass a very intensive one year study, you would receive your teachers degree. It would only be as certified vocal coach and music teacher, but at least you would be a teacher. I think that would be a great opportunity."

"University? Me a teacher? What, how? I mean, wow and no way. Will New Directions needs me, I can't leave. And where should I go?" 

Will smiled at Sam. He opened his desk drawer and took out an envelope.

"Sam, the New Directions will be in good hands, during your time at college. In fact I will personally take care of it, so you don't need to worry. It will wait for you." Will handed Sam the envelope, encouraging him to open it.  
"I bought you a one way ticket, it's a present. Also I paid for your tuition, so you can't really decline anymore. This is an investment we do in you and I want you to make the best of your future. I believe in you Sam!" An encouraging smile and a nod from Will, made Sam open the envelope. It was a one way ticket to New York.

"New York? Will I wasn't happy there, why would I go back there? Of course I feel honoured, that you did all this for me, but why New York?" Sam asked. 

"Because this course is at NYU. Also some of our good friends are there, they will have your back and make sure you will be comfortable. I am sure you will be happy to see Blaine and the others."

New York. New York bared so many memories, good and bad ones, for Sam he wasn't sure if it was a good idea to go there. Of course Blaine was there, and geez he loved this guy. Blaine was his best friend, his brother, it would be amazing to spend time together again.

New York it was, Sam would be going back to the city and spent the next year there. With Blaine. With Rachel.

****

Rachel was nervously pacing around her living room, making Santana snap annoyingly.  
"Damn Berry, sit down, you are making me nervous!"

"What am I going to do Santana? They will hate me, if Blaine not already does."

"Skittles are made of rainbows, they make you happy. Rachel you should have some!" Brittany said offering Rachel a bowl full of Skittles.

"No thanks, Brit." Rachel offered her a weak smile and let herself fall down on the couch.  
"Do you guys think I should talk to Blaine first? I don't think he spoke to Kurt yet. Kurt would have already been here otherwise."

"I agree, I don't think Lady Hummel is aware of the situation yet. Well how about Brit and I take Dalton and Kurt out for dinner and you and Blaine have a chat?" Santana suggested, already taking out her phone and texting Kurt.  
"Oh I really want to see baby Sam. Let's go Santana!" Brittany said cheerful.

It had been decided. Santana and Brittany took out Dalton and Kurt to explore New York. They weren't expected to back until late evening.  
Now it was up to Rachel to approach Blaine and mend the broken bridges. She needed to be okay with Blaine, before she had to face the thunderstorm Kurt was going to be and the nasty earthquake Jesse would be.

****  
Rachel and Blaine decided to meet on neutral ground, so they shared a very silent walk to the closest Starbucks. They had their usual order and decided to take a seat on a nearby bench, since the weather was very nice.

There was a long, uncomfortable silence, as neither of them knew how to start. The situation was awkward enough as it was and now with some time, that had passed - the initial steam of anger was a lot less prominent.

"So... this is awkward", Blaine finally started. The last couple of days he had tried to wrap his head around this situation. Initial anger and frustration, feelings of betrayal all had been turned into confusion.

"It is, isn't it?" Rachel replied, giving Blaine a weak smile.  
"Look Blaine, I am genuinely sorry, I really am. I am sorry for just running away and I am sorry for this mess, we are in. BUT, you have to believe me, I didn't know. I really didn't and I never meant for that to happen. For Sam to happen."

Blaine took an intensive look at Rachel. "When you ran away I felt really angry, I felt betrayed. When I confronted you, I had hoped you had a logical explanation for all this, but you left. Rachel, I was so angry these past days and now I am just confused. Look I don't want to fight with you, I don't want anything to change, but let's face it, it already has."

"I was.. no I am confused too. Look I love you guys, you and Kurt and Dalton of course. You are my family, we are a family and I don't want this to change. I admit I shouldn't have ran and I apologize for that. Blaine, I never meant to hurt you. I am sorry Dalton is not your or Kurt's biological son, but nevertheless he is still your son and that will never change. For me all this was a surprising at it is for you. You have to believe me!" Rachel pleaded.

Blaine was quiet for a moment until he let out a deep sigh. Blaine felt relieved that Rachel still thought of Dalton as Blaine's and Kurt's son - since this was one of the deepest fears he had, loosing Dalton. He knew Kurt wouldn't be that easily swayed, but for Blaine this situation already felt a lot better. He didn't want to fight Rachel, he loved her. She was right, she was family. And what did family do best? Forgive.  
He ultimately took her hand and placed a kiss on it.

"I don't want to fight Rachel. I love you and I love Dalton, not matter what. He is still my son and it won't change, if he is not mine by blood. In fact it is a little bit of a blessing in disguise, now I have a son, who is part of my two most favourite people in the world, a part of my husband." Blaine smiled at Rachel, who beamed at him in return.  
Both felt a lot more relieved, hearts less heavy then before. Of course, the situation was still not great and Blaine was just a very forgiving personality. 

"Thank you Blaine. You really have no idea, how much it means to me, that you understand. Thank you for forgiving me."

"There is really nothing to forgive or is there anything else? It's not like you planned to have Sam's baby right? How did it happen anyways?"

Rachel told Blaine the story and they spent the rest of the evening together, having dinner and making up. It felt good to know that not everything was as bad as it seemed to be.  
Little did Rachel know, that the storm was still coming.


	5. Chapter 5

Santana and Brittany had stayed for a couple more days in town. They had left the day Jesse had returned from his trip to Chicago.  
Blaine and Rachel had decided not to speak to Kurt about the whole situation yet, why wake a sleeping dragon, right?  
Both of them knew sooner or later they had to drop the bomb, but for the moment they were comfortable with the little secret between them. Also who could predict, how similar Dalton and Sam would look, when Dalton would grew up? Maybe he would turn out to look more like Rachel and they could keep this secret forever. Was it a stupid idea? Certainly, but as it is with secrets - when you have them, you really want to keep them. However, always keep in mind that secrets always have a way to come around and be revealed.

"Rachel? Rachel, honey we have to get going!" Jesse was putting on his coat and took a last look into the mirror at the wardrobe close to the entrance. He was looking good, very good in fact. Tonight's meeting was very important for Jesse, as he was meeting investors for his new play.

"Coming!" She replied, while she hastily came down the stairs. Rachel was looking gorgeous. She was wearing a peach coloured cocktail dressed and matching strap heals. He hair was down in long waves.

"You look beautiful. Let's go, we are going to be late!" Jesse said, after taking a short look at his wife. She was indeed beautiful and he couldn't imagine any other woman at his side.  
Jesse took Rachel by her hand, after he helped her putting on her coat.  
They left the house shortly after and entered the town car, whose driver opened the doors for them.

The dinner was at a fancy restaurant, Rachel didn't particularly liked. When she was younger she always wanted the glam and glitz of the successful Broadway life, but now that she lived the Broadway dream, she preferred the casual Downtown Manhattan life. Not that life anywhere in New York wasn't just fabulous, it was just more natural and comfortable.

Rachel didn't really listen to the enthusiastic conversation Jesse was having with the potential investors for his new show. Rachel wasn't interested into Jesse's new show either, mostly because it was a revival of "Thrill Me", which literally only had two performers and they were male.

Rachel was not really following the conversation and was wondering how long this dinner would still last. There was nothing more she wanted than going home and see her boys.

"Rachel? Rachel?" She was suddenly jerking her head up, when she heard Andrew, one of Jesse's potential investors speaking to her.

"I am sorry, what did you say?" Rachel said, smiling apologetically.

"I was wondering, do you already have new offers? Jesse told me you have your last performance with Jane Austen Sings soon and since you are moving to Chicago soon, I was wondering if you had any new projects." Andrew said.  
"Excuse me? Chicago? Why would you think I am moving to Chicago?" Rachel asked. She had no business whatsoever in Chicago and no reason to go there. Her life was here and she would stay here.

"Rachel honey, I was meaning to talk to you about this. I got a great offer as advisor for Jane Austen Sings in Chicago and Andrew here has some great ideas for some shows in Chicago. Chicago offers lots of Musical options too, so you wouldn't have to worry about your work." Jesse chimed in. He saw Chicago as a chance to rekindle their marriage. A place without Kurt and Blaine and the child. Jesse knew his marriage wasn't great and maybe a change of scenery would help them sort out their issues.

"Jesse.. I.. I think we should discuss this at home. Please excuse me, I need to powder my nose!" Rachel said, excusing herself. She knew this would become a lengthy discussion, because she would most definitely not leave New York. Who did Jesse think he is, just deciding to leave for Chicago? 

They didn't speak about Chicago anymore and soon the dinner ended. Jesse and Rachel were silent the entire way home. Jesse however knew, by the way Rachel was storming inside the house, without waiting for him that she was angry.  
He sighed, why did she always had to make it so complicated?

"We need to talk about this Rachel." Jesse said, when he followed her into their bedroom.

"You are right Jesse, we need to talk about this. What in the world made you decide we are moving to Chicago? When did you plan on telling me?" Rachel asked, trying to stay as calm as possible, however anger was boiling inside of her. How could Jesse even dare to make decisions like this without her consent?

"I did it for us Rachel. Don't you see how we are breaking apart? I don't even know when we had sex the last time. You are spending all the time with Kurt and Blaine and Dalton. I feel you have a family with them, but not with me. I AM your HUSBAND! Not them! Chicago is a new start, a new beginning. Just you and me!" Jesse explained. He loved Rachel and he wanted them to work, but he was at the end of his wits and thought Chicago could be a solution. Chicago had to be the solution. During his last business trip he had found a new apartment for them . They could live a wonderful life there, just the two of them.

"My life is in New York, Jesse - I will not leave. And yes Kurt and Blaine and Dalton are my family. Dalton is my son! I am sorry if you feel like you are not part of this family, but Jesse you are not really doing anything to belong are you? From the beginning you were not supportive of me being there surrogate mother. When Dalton was born you never made an attempt to get to know him. Even know you barely spent time with him, only when you have to." Rachel said. "Look Jesse, I know things haven't been great between us but moving to Chicago? Ripping me away from my life, my family, my son? That is not going to change things for the better Jesse! You should know me well enough, that this is not going to work!" 

"What do you want me to do Rachel? WHAT? I am trying, but you are never here. You are always spending time with them. Yes I am not happy. And Dalton.. well great he is your son, but that's that. He IS YOUR son, not mine. You were supposed to be only a surrogate and not absolutely and utterly involved in his life. How do you think do I feel ? Do you think I am happy when I look at YOUR child? The one, that's not mine? Do you want me to play happy family? Not going to happen Rachel!" Jesse exclaimed, pacing through the room. His wife wasn't getting it. He didn't want to have his wife's spawn, he wanted to have his own children with Rachel. He didn't like Blaine and Kurt in particular, their influence on Rachel was immense. When they had been younger, she had done everything to please him... but now it was different.  
Rachel looked at Jesse very intensely.  
"If you cannot accept my son Jesse, then we don't have a future." She simply said. In fact she had this thought for a while now. She wasn't particularly unhappy with Jesse, but she wasn't really happy either. Their marriage had become more of a roommate agreement, if she was being honest. Jesse was right, when he had said they didn't had sex in a long time anymore - it was true, she couldn't remember either. She didn't really care though. Jesse was just there and she didn't miss him, so she knew deep inside, maybe Jesse wasn't the right choice anymore after all, maybe he wasn't even the right choice to begin with.

"Excuse me? Rachel, what exactly are you implying?"

"Maybe Jesse we don't have a future. You and I maybe this is not going to work anymore. I am sorry, but if you cannot accept my family, how do we want to stay intact?"

"Are you saying you want to divorce me? Over this?" 

"Maybe."

"Rachel you must be kidding me. We are married, just because we have a fight we cannot get divorced. We swore to stay married until death does us part. Rachel, your ARE MY WIFE, YOU ARE NOT married to the gays! DAMN IT Rachel! What the hell? You want to leave me? YOU WANT TO LEAVE ME? Because of your bastard son?" Jesse yelled. He was angry, what the hell was happening? He did not intend nor did he ever imagine this conversation would go this way.

"What did you just say? Did you just call MY SON a bastard? SCREW YOU! Don't you ever dare insult my son again!" Rachel jumped off her seat staring angrily at Jesse. She couldn't believe he would insult his son this way. How dare he?

"Rachel... look I didn't mean it like this. Try to understand me - I am loosing you." Jesse tried to explain in a softer tone.

"No Jesse, there is no apology you could give me right now. And if you behave like this, if that is what you are thinking Jesse, than you are not loosing me - you already lost me! I think it would be better for you to leave now!"

What had happened? What happened with Jesse and Rachel? They hadn't had a serious fight since three years, at least not one that escalated like this. They were masters in avoiding conflicts. Apparently not anymore.

***  
"I don't understand Rachel, so what is going to happen now?" Kurt asked his best friend. After Jesse had left, Rachel had gone to Kurt's and Blaine's house. She had sung a lullaby for her son with Kurt and since then they were having some wine and sat in the den.  
Rachel had told Kurt about the fight, unsure what to do.

"I don't know Kurt. I am so angry at Jesse, how could he say that about Dalton? Our sweet little baby." Rachel was shaking her head.

"Look, I am not trying to defend Jesse, but I think I can understand where he is coming from." Kurt finally said, only to earn a angry glare from Rachel.

"Kurt!" She exclaimed.

"Wait Rachel, let me continue. Of course it was wrong of him to say that - I mean seriously, what a jerk! But, he is right, when he says that we are family and he is excluded. He is rarely present, when we spent time together. Be it his own fault or not, but I think he is jealous. And let's face it Rachel, who wouldn't be, if there gorgeous wife spends all their time with other men? Especially if she has a child with them!" Kurt smiled at her and that made Rachel grin. Of course he was right, yes Jesse felt neglected and Rachel knew it. Maybe she did spent a little too much time with Kurt and Blaine, but it felt so right. She belonged here with them.

"You are probably right Kurt, but Chicago? Really? What is going on his head? I don't even know him anymore." Rachel said taking a deep sip of her wine.

"Can I ask you something Rachel?" Blaine suddenly said. He had listened to the conversation of his husband and his best friend, no wanting to interrupt, but he had observed this whole situation far too long, to not notice anything off.

"Of course Blaine, go ahead." Rachel said, looking at her friend.

"Do you love him?"

Rachel was looking at Blaine for a moment not knowing what to say. Did she love Jesse? Of course she loved him, she married him right? She liked him, that she knew certain. Did she still had butterflies in her stomach? No, but that was normal right?

"Well... I mean we are married, so I guess." She finally answered. "I don't have butterflies anymore. Not the way I did when we were back in high school. But Jesse and I we are so similar, so we are a good match."

"That's not what I asked." Blaine said. "Rachel just because someone matches with you, doesn't mean you love someone. And just for the record, I still have butterflies in my stomach when I see Kurt." Kurt smiled at his husbands comment and kissed him on the cheek.

"So do I my love!" The couple smiled at each other, before looking back at Rachel.

"Blaine has a point Diva! When you love someone, you don't need to think about it and you definitely don't have to guess, you know! You knew with Finn, didn't you?" Kurt said. He was worried about his best friends happiness. He knew that it took her a long time to move on from Finn and he was happy when she got married, but he had never been certain that she had made the right choice. Still, he had decided to support her whatever her decisions were - that was what friends where for, right?

"Finn will always have a special place in my heart Kurt. I will never stop loving him, he will always have place in here. I moved on - with Jesse. I had my one true love and he died. I don't expect to find it again. Not everyone is as lucky as Carole and Burt!" 

"Rachel is that what you really think? Did you marry Jesse, because you thought there would not be anyone better or it didn't matter, because Finn is dead?" Kurt exclaimed surprise, not realising how much his friend really must had suffered.  
Rachel just shrugged her shoulders.

"Oh honey!" Blaine said, moving from his seat, to sit next to Rachel. He put an arm around her.  
"Kurt what are we going to do with her?"

Kurt chuckled and took the other side of Rachel.  
"Rachel, you taught me to never settle for second best. Jesse is a good guy, but he is not the right guy for you. You don't love him, so you should be honest to yourself and to him, that this marriage has come to an end. You should end it as long as it can still be done civil. Don't hurt yourself nor Jesse anymore. Don't torture yourself. You deserve true love and so does he." Kurt said.

"I think Rachel, you should really go into yourself and think about your marriage with you and Jesse. Does this marriage has a future? Jesse wants to leave to Chicago and maybe that is a good step for him. Maybe also you need a change, you are an independent and wonderful woman. Jesse might be a comfortable choice, but he wasn't the right one, if your heart doesn't scream that you love him with all your heart. Give yourself a break and find the butterflies in your stomach again!"

"Thank you guys! Really thank you. I love you! I will sort things out with Jesse as I should have a long time ago. You are right, I cannot make him happy and neither can he make me happy."

 

One week later Jesse moved out. They had talked, they had cried and they had fought. In the end they had agreed that they would take a break. Jesse would move to Chicago to work on his new play and Rachel would stay in New York.  
They had agreed to take some time from each other, as Jesse felt like he still deserved a chance. Maybe they could overcome their issues and find back to each other.

Rachel wasn't sad Jesse was gone, she felt relieved. She liked Jesse and she would continue to do so, but she had realized she didn't love him. Her heart was full of love, but unfortunately none of it was for Jesse.


	6. Chapter 6

It had been a month since Jesse left for Chicago. They talked occasionally on the phone, but since Jesse was extremely busy he hadn't had a lot of time. Rachel didn't really mind, in fact she enjoyed being single and not having to think about jealous partners, but rather enjoy her time with her most favourite people in the world.  
If Rachel was being honest, she also felt like Jesse sounded happier on the phone. Maybe it really had been a step, they should have done a while ago. Still they had not yet again discussed their divorce, for the moment they were only separated with an option of getting back together - at least in Jesse's opinion. Rachel knew she wouldn't want to get back with Jesse, she treasured him, but only as a friend. The fights they had prior to his move to Chicago, had shown her that she and Jesse would not have a future. Even more important, she had realized she didn't love him anymore.

For the moment Rachel just enjoyed being Rachel. Kurt, Blaine and Dalton were in San Francisco for vacation and wouldn't return until the end of the following week.   
She had just come from a meeting with Carmen Tibideaux and had discussed the vocal course, Carmen wanted Rachel to teach. They had agreed, that Rachel would teach a summer course at NYADA, which was only for eight weeks, twice a week. It was not a full time position, but it was good for her as she needed time to get her life back on track.

She was taking a walk through Central Park and having some FroYo, enjoying the beautiful weather, when she suddenly heard someone calling out her name.

"Rachel? Rachel!" 

Rachel turned around, looking for the voice calling her out. Her face changed from confused to delighted surprise.

"Dani! Oh my gosh, how are you? I haven't seen you in ages!" Rachel exclaimed, pulling Santana's ex-girlfriend into a tight hug. When Dani and Santana used to date, they had frequently seen each other and had become quite close. However when Santana and Dani had split, it was as if Dani had never existed. It was sad, since Rachel did really like her.

"I am great, how are you? You look amazing!" Dani said, hugging Rachel back and flashing her a happy smile.

"Thank you! You look great too. I see you gone brunette." Rachel said, thinking back to the blue hair Dani used to have years back.

"Yes, I went rainbow and figured I give my hair a break." Dani laughed. "So tell me Rachel Berry how about we have a drink and talk about old times?" 

"Well I would say, this is a splendid idea Dani! Would you mind stopping at my place real quick, so I can rid of all my stuff? I just had an appointment at NYADA. We could refresh ourselves and do a girls night out? Like old times?" Rachel said, showing Dani her heavy bags.

"Sure, sounds like a great plan." Dani agreed and so the plan was made.

Rachel and Dani took a cab to Rachel's, where they opened a bottle of wine and got changed and all dolled up. They had a good laugh about old times and enjoyed doing each other's make up. Rachel felt like she was having an amazing girl's sleep over with Dani, just without the actual sleepover.

After about an hour of getting ready, they were looking at themselves in the mirror.

"Dani, you look stunning!" Rachel said. Dani was wearing a black dress with lace cutouts, that fit her perfectly. Her brown hair was put up into a messy bun and her makeup was made of simple black eyeliner, lots of mascara and perfectly ruby red lips.

"Say's the amazing Rachel Berry, Broadwaystar? Well thank you, you look stunning yourself! I would say we are some sexy babes!" Dani said, laughing.

"You bet we are!" Rachel was wearing a tight red mini dress, that was fitting her curves perfectly. Her dark curls were open and well in soft waves down her back. She was sporting smoky eyes and was indeed looking absolutely stunning.

Rachel and Dani hauled a cab and drove to a cocktail bar in downtown New York. Thursdays was karaoke night, so Rachel and Dani thought it would be a nice place to talk, sing and drink.

Three daiquiris later, Rachel and Dani had sung four songs and were now giggling and laughing on a table, while sipping on another drink.  
When a Blonde walked up and asked for Dani to dance, Rachel stared a moment into her drink, when she felt someone sitting next to her.

"Well hello there pretty lady. How about another drink?"

"I am good, thanks." Rachel replied, giving a quick smile.

"Why so cold? Let's have a good time. You are hot, I am hot - let's have a good time and enjoy ourselves!" The guys said, moving closer towards Rachel and putting a hand on her leg.  
Rachel was startled by the hand on her leg and shoved it immediately away.

"Woah hands off. Look I am sure you are a nice guy, but I am not interested. I would appreciate, if you could leave me alone!" Rachel said and moved further away with her chair. She was feeling rather uncomfortable. The guy, even though not bad looking, intimidated Rachel - also he was way to handsy, for his own good.

"Sweetheart, don't be so difficult. Let me buy you a drink and then I'll take you home, we have some fun and you will be all better!" He said, smirking and eyeing her once over. Rachel brought her arms over her chest, as she felt being undressed by that guys eyes. His hands were moving back to her legs, pressing her upper thigh tightly.  
Appalled Rachel jumped off her chair, giving that guy an disgusted look.

"I said HANDS OFF!" She loudly said. She wanted to move away, but the guy had her cornered between the wall and the table, putting Rachel into a very uncomfortable situation.  
The guy was not getting the hint or maybe he didn't want to, because he also got up and pushed Rachel to the wall. Her hands automatically tried to push him away, but he was too strong for her petite figure.

"I like my girls wild!" He said giving her a dirty smirk.  
He was about to get closer to her, when someone grabbed him at the shoulder and ripped him away from Rachel.

"She said, she is not interested! I think you should leave!" A tall dark blonde guy had joined the scene and put himself between Rachel and the sleazeball.

"Who the HELL ARE YOU?" The guy yelled, wiped his face and tried to tackle his opponent.. The other guy avoided the tackle without any issues, laughing and pushing the guy down to the floor.

"Your girl?" The other guy laughed. "Rachel you know that guy?" Rachel shook her head, staring at her protector, trying to figure out if she was in an absolute crazy dream or if that was really happening.  
"Listen up dude, walk away and nothing else happens."

The sleazy guy glared angrily at his opponent, but after letting his gaze wander between Rachel and her protector he pushed himself off the ground and walked away. He would get back to them another time.

"Are you alright Rach?"

Rachel was still staring with disbelief. It took a few seconds before she found her voice again. "Sam?"

"The one and only!" He said, flashing her a smile.  
Rachel reached out her hand and put it on Sam's arm, as if she couldn't believe that he was standing in front of her. "Sam." She said once again and finally threw herself into his arms.  
It was so good to see his familiar face, to feel how his strong arms responded to her hug and pulled her close, to smell his familiar scent of wood and musk, the smell of home.  
Rachel's hand found her way underneath Sam's dark leather jacket, gripping his navy blue shirt tightly. She couldn't believe that he was here, she couldn't believe that he was protecting her, she couldn't believe that Sam always seemed to know when she needed someone to pick her up and take care of her. He did when Finn died, he did when her heart was badly hurt, he did when Jesse and she were fighting and he did now.  
She could feel his hand softly stroking her back, drawing little circle with his hands. She could feel how his fingers were playing with her stray curls and how his chin was resting on top of her head. This felt so right.

"Sam..." she finally said again, loosening the hug and looking into his face. "Thank you!"

"Always, Rach. Always." He simply said.

****

That evening Sam had brought Rachel home, after she said goodbye to Dani. He had made sure that Rachel came home alright and they had decided to meet up soon. While Rachel was really eager to talk to Sam, she was to shaken to actually have a proper conversation - also she had definitely drunken too much alcohol.  
They and exchanged numbers and promised to meet each other the following day.

When Rachel woke up around noon, she felt her head spinning.

"Ugh..." She moaned, pushing her head in between the pillows. She was just about to close her eyes once again, when she suddenly jumped by the very shrill and way too loud noise of her phone ringing.  
"Rachel speaking?" She answered with a low groan, cursing herself.

"Well good morning sunshine, you sound awful." Sam joked on the other end of the phone.

"Sam. Morning..." Rachel mumbled. "I feel terrible and I will never drink again..."

"Funny story, I am sure I have heard it before!" He laughed. "Also it's Friday night and with Blaine out of town, you are my only good friend in town! So you have to go out with me!"

"No way... I am not leaving my house... I feel like a truck hit me over.."

Sam chuckled. "Well how about I come over tonight, bring some veggie Pizza and still water and we watch a movie or so?" 

"Still water? Really?" Now Rachel had to laugh, but she regretted it only a second later, as her head hurt.

"Well I can also bring that bottle of wine and that six pack I have stored." He replied.

"Pizza sounds fine, how does 8pm sound?" She said giggling.

"I'll see you at 8!"

Rachel remembered darkly, that she had mentioned to Sam that Jesse had left, when he had brought her home. She wasn't sure if Sam knew any details, but she didn't mind either way. In fact at the moment she was just happy to see her good, old friend and spent a nice evening with him. All other worries had been pushed into the very back of her mind, even though there was that tiny, nosy and very annoying voice, telling Rachel that it might not be a good idea to let Sam into her house, since this could endanger her secret with Dalton.  
At the moment Rachel was ignoring it foolishly, Sam wouldn't go into her study or the bedroom, where most of the pictures where stored anyways.

Rachel decided to drowse a little longer. She got up around 2pm and took a very long shower. When she was dressed and thought of herself to look acceptable (basically not to hangover, but also not to heavily dolled up), she ate some soup and was relaxing in the living room until Sam was going to come around.

It was shortly before 8 pm, when her phone rang.

"So I am having a big veggie delight, some mango froyo, a bottle of chardonnay and a six pack beer. Also I got a bottle of Evian, because I wasn't sure if you were joking or not. Anyways what I am trying to say is, my hands are really full and if you don't open this door in a second, I am sure everything will fall down!"

Only moments later, Rachel opened her front door, finding Sam juggling with said items in his hands. She had to laugh, when she saw him and quickly took some of the items out of his hands.

"Hi Sam, come on in!"


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: So sorry guys, that I didn't post here. I just posted everything up to Chapter 7, so this story is up to date with the fanfiction . net one. Thank you for the kudos and comments, I really appreciate it :)

"So, how is life treating you Rach?" Sam asked. He was popping open a can of beer and sat down on Rachel's very comfortable sofa. He took a curious look around the living room, scanning over interior, decoration and personal belongings. This living room looked so unlike Rachel, it was missing her golden stars, her wall of pictures (in fact a total lack of pictures, except a picture of Jesse and Rachel from their wedding), it was missing her driven Broadway dream pursuit. The only thing this living room resembled Rachel was her Tony in the trophy case (well hers and Jesses, as he darkly remembered Blaine telling him that both of them were Tony winners).  
Rachel was in the next door kitchen, grabbing plates, napkins and a pizza cutter. She joined Sam on the sofa and placed the plates in front of them. She handed him a napkin and started to cut the pizza in pieces.

"Well," she started, accepting the glass of wine Sam poured for her, "life is okay. Jane Austen Sing's ended and I am taking a short break from Broadway. I am going to teach a class at NYADA this summer. Just yesterday I finalized the paperwork with Carmen Tibideaux." She offered Sam a slice of pizza and settled down into a comfortable position on the sofa.

"That's good news, isn't it?" Sam asked, taking a bite of his pizza.

"Absolutely. I am quite excited!" She replied happily. She really was happy, about her upcoming teaching course. She loved NYADA and she appreciated the chance she received. In fact while she loved Broadway with all her heart, she remembered how much she had enjoyed teaching Glee Club back in Lima. So the course at NYADA felt like a little revival of that teaching experience and who didn't love revivals?

"So you are going to be a teacher and I am going to do a teaching course, funny coincidence, don't you think?" Sam said, taking a sip of his beer.

"Teaching course? What kind of teaching course? In fact, I just realized we haven't had a chance to even talk about what you are doing in New York and how long you are going to stay." Rachel said, realizing that they actually didn't talk much at all. It was so odd meeting Sam yesterday. He had rescued her from being harassed, he had brought her home and that was that.  
"Oh yes, Will arranged for me to get my teaching degree. It's a one year study at NYU. I just moved back here last week. So sorry I didn't get in touch before, but Blaine told me he was on vacation." Sam said, smiling nervously. He had wanted to call Rachel, but he didn't know if she would ignore him again. Like, after their tête-a-tête three years ago. He had to admit he really had been afraid of not being able to see her, of things being more than just awkward between them and now he was in her living room. He felt a little bit relieved and it was really just a little bit. The evening before she had been tipsy and she was in an unfortunate situation. When they had hugged, he wasn't sure if it was just her being so terrified of what had happened, that she needed human comfort or that she had really missed him. Now he was here struggling to find a good conversation topic. Let's face it whenever you meet someone from your past, people just ask how life is treating one. Those conversations are superficial and quickly become awkward. That really wasn't what he wanted. He wanted to get to know Rachel again, to be her friend again and maybe even more than that.

"One year?" Rachel's face suddenly fell. She had been excited to see Sam again, but now the little voice in her head became louder. In fact she could have sworn, it had just said "Told you so." Not very helpful - at all. If Sam would stay for a year, he was bound to meet Dalton. He was bound to realize he had a son and then her life would be thrown over, even more as it was now. Kurt.. oh god what would she do about Kurt? He would hate her. Kurt would hate Blaine, because he knew. She would be the reason her best friends would get divorced. She would destroy her son's life, who would become the center of a custody law suit. Maybe Sam would want to have custody and he would ice all of them out.  
A moment of panic took over Rachel. She felt cold sweat running down her back, her breathing becoming short gasps and she must have looked white as a ghost, because Sam looked at her worried, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Rach, are you alright?" He seemed worried. He wasn't a bad person, right? He was Sam, he wouldn't keep a grudge against her. He would be able to forgive, right? Rachel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She tried to calm herself and grabbed her glass of wine. She finished the glass with one very big gulp and felt a little better.

"I am okay..." she tried to convince Sam, but she wasn't even able to convince herself. Inviting Sam didn't seem like a good idea anymore, but asking him to leave wouldn't change a thing now. Maybe it would be better to become closer with Sam and that could lead to him being more understanding, couldn't it? Rachel wasn't sure, as she felt thousands of thoughts flooding her brain.

"Are you sure? You don't look okay. Talk to me Rachel, we are friends, remember?" Sam said, trying to sound soothing. Were they friends? This situation was surreal, but why couldn't it be the way it was back in high school? Why couldn't they just be okay and leave all that awkwardness behind?

Rachel gave Sam a weak smile.  
"It's just..." She closed her eyes again, trying to think quickly about the situation. She couldn't tell him the real reason, could she now? "It's Jesse. We split. He moved to Chicago." She finally said. It wasn't a lie, they did split and he did move, but she wasn't really upset about it. Sam however bought it.

"Wow. I am sorry Rachel. Do you want to talk about it?" Sam asked, stroking her back.

"There is nothing really to talk about", she replied in a quiet voice, slightly shaking her head.  
"It wasn't great between us in a long time. He wanted to move to Chicago and start again, but I couldn't leave here. He didn't want me together with my family anymore..."

"Your family? You mean your dads?"

"No, Kurt and Blaine and Dalton."  
"Right." Sam sighed. He put an arm around Rachel and pulled her into his side. She put her head onto his chest, inhaling his scent. It felt good to be with him, even though she knew she was doing a mistake.  
"Rachel, can I ask you something?" Sam asked, giving her a serious look.

"Sure. Go ahead."

"Did you consider Jesse family?"

Rachel gave him a puzzled look. "Why would Jesse be my family?"  
Sam felt bad for Jesse. He really did. He wasn't sure what was the deal with Rachel, but she must had hurt Jesse with those thoughts a lot. Maybe she hadn't done it intentionally, in fact he believed Rachel would never do something like that intentionally, still excluding ones husband of the term family, must not only hurt ones pride but also break ones heart.

"Rachel your husband is your family. The person you choose to be with you is part of your family Rachel. I know you surely didn't intend to hurt Jesse, but maybe he was hurt because you didn't see him as your family. Please don't take this the wrong way, but maybe it is better you guys split. I think you love Kurt and Blaine and Dalton so much, you didn't had enough love for Jesse. Maybe he was just not the right choice of partner, because you need someone who understands this family situation." Sam said. He wasn't sure if he was overstepping by telling Rachel this, but he did deeply care for her.

"Sam.. I.." Rachel said, feeling startled. She didn't know what to say about this. She felt slightly offended, but on the other hand Sam was right. Blaine was right, when he had asked her if she loved Jesse. Sam was right stating she really thought wrongly about her marriage. Of course she should have thought of Jesse as family, but she didn't. Blaine and Kurt had always been her family and when Dalton came along, that was that. She was utterly in love with her family and Jesse just didn't fit in. He didn't make an attempt to fit in and Rachel was okay with it, because she wasn't in love with Jesse and she was happy with Blaine and Kurt. Sam was absolutely right. How was he able to understand her so well? Even after all those years?

"I am sorry, if I overstepped any boundaries." He apologized.  
"Don't. You are right... you are absolutely right Sam. Thank you for being honest with me. I think I have to apologize to Jesse." She said. She got up from the sofa and looked for her mobile phone.

"Sam, I am so sorry. This evening really didn't go the way it was supposed to."

"Don't be Rachel. I am glad we talked and we can be honest with each other." Sam said smiling at her. Honesty.. Rachel had to force herself not to laugh from the irony. Sam was being honest and he was being sweet and nice and she didn't deserve that, because she was not honest. She was far from being honest. She had a terrible secret and she was afraid of it.

"Thank you Sam." Rachel was playing with the thought of calling Jesse, as she felt the need to speak to him. After a moment struggling with herself, she decided against it.

"How about we watch a movie? Let's stop with all the serious talk and start having a good time." She finally said. When Sam nodded, Rachel popped in a DVD and sat next to Sam on the couch. She put a bit more distance between them, but after a while they fell into a comfortable seating arrangement. Shoulders touching, knees grazing, shared laughter. 

Even though Rachel had felt rather hangover this morning, she had finished almost the entire bottle of wine during the course of the evening. Sam had opened his last can of beer and was nibbling on some liquorish. His arm had moved around Rachel's shoulders during the second half of Interception and was playing with a streak of her hair. She was resting her head on his shoulders, inhaling his familiar scent. She felt safe.

***

They had fallen asleep on the sofa. Rachel wasn't sure how it happened, but somehow she ended up being spooned by Sam on her couch. She couldn't deny that she had slept really well and Sam's strong arms around her waist and shoulder were really nice. She could feel his chest rising evenly; his nose was nuzzling the back of her head. Their legs were entangled with each other and Rachel just couldn't help herself, but to feel safe and good.  
She was enjoying the quiet comfort for a moment longer, until she carefully untangled herself from Sam without waking him up. When she successfully managed to do so, she took a blanket and placed it over Sam, who was still sleeping blissfully.  
She went up to the master bathroom and freshened herself up. She felt a lot better, after she had brushed her teethed and splashed some ice cold water into her face.  
After a quick change of clothes she quietly went downstairs to the kitchen and started to brew a strong coffee.  
Rachel had to smile, last night turned out to be a lot nicer than she had thought. After the initial weird conversation, they had enjoyed each other's companies while watching some Christopher Nolan movies. She hadn't felt that good within a man's company in a while and sleeping with Sam (sleeping as in really just sleeping) had felt good. 

She was humming a happy melody, while preparing breakfast, when she heard shuffling noises from the living room. Sam must have woken up.

"Morning.." he mumbled, when he stumbled into the kitchen, following the wonderful smell of coffee. He was yawning and stretching, while he was taking a seat close to the kitchen table.

"Good morning sunshine!" Rachel said, flashing Sam a smile. She poured a cup of coffee and placed it in front of Sam. "Still taking four pieces of sugar?" She asked handing him the sugar pot, with brown sugar cubes she had stored close to the coffee machine.  
Sam nodded, smiling. He was surprised that she still knew how he was drinking his coffee.

"Thanks Rach!"

Rachel placed some freshly cut tomatoes and avocados on the table.

"I hope you don't mind a vegetarian breakfast. I don't have any eggs, sorry." She said, adding some cut cucumbers and some fresh fruits on the table.

"That's fine. No need to do anything special Rachel." He said. "Thanks for letting me sleep on your couch." 

They enjoyed a quiet breakfast and each other's company. Only a few words were exchanged, since Rachel remembered, that Sam really had never been a morning person.

Sam was drinking his second cup of coffee and he and Rachel were engaged into a very intense discussion about old times. His fingers were touching hers softly and they were both having dorky grins plastered over their faces. They were in their own little world, enjoying each other, like they used to when they used to date. In fact Sam felt that they had never stopped. Whenever they used to drink coffee back in Lima, they were sitting closely to each other, fingers slightly touching, knees grazing and sharing smiles. Sam had loved the mornings after, when Rachel had stayed over at his place. They had spent hours looking at each other, sharing little touches, kissing each other. Well the last part was certainly missing now, but Sam felt blissful.  
With Jesse gone, maybe he still had a shot with Rachel. The way they were now, him being here, certainly gave him hope.

He was about take her hand, when the door bell rang.

"Stay seated Rach, I'll get it!" Sam said, jumping off his chair and walking towards the front door. When he opened it, he was greeted with a very familiar sight.

"Blaine? Kurt? Hey you guys! Rachel said you weren't expected back until next week!"  
Sam said greeting his friends and was about to pull Blaine into a hug, when he heard a little voice.

"Where's mommy?"


	8. Chapter 8

"Oh my, Sam! What a surprise to see you! What are you doing here?" Kurt greeted Sam, hugging him. Sam returned the hug in a hesitating motion, as he was feeling like he had just seen a ghost of his past.  
He must have looked incredibly pale, because Kurt looked at him worriedly.  
"Sam are you alright? You look very pale." Kurt said, putting a hand on his friends shoulder. He was completely oblivious to Blaine, who seemed to find the floor incredibly interesting and Sam who was starring at a very impatient Dalton.

"MOMMY!!!" Dalton yelled a little louder, since no one seemed to respond to him. The little boy was held by Blaine, who seemed to be in shock.  
When Rachel heard the voice of her little boy, she sprinted towards the front door, first looking at Sam and then to Blaine. Sam knew. Sam had realized that there was a miniature version of him, who was in fact Rachel's son. He wasn't stupid, so he knew there were not that many realistic options of how Dalton, could look exactly like Sam, when he was Sam's age.

"Hi Baby! How come you guys are back so early?" Rachel asked carefully, taking her son in an embrace, when he freed himself from Blaine's grip. The little boy almost jumped into Rachel's arm, like a powerful little whirlwind. His little arms went around Rachel's neck and gave her tight hug.  
"Mommy!! Miss you!" He quacked and hugged Rachel closely. Rachel, even though being worried about the current situation, couldn't help herself but smile when she embraced her son. She had missed her baby so much and she was happy to see him. Dalton always made her day better.

"Well, clearly our son missed his mom so much, that he was very persistent of returning home. I guess he can't be longer than two weeks without mommy." Kurt explained laughing. He entered the house past Sam and gave Rachel a hug. He placed a kiss on top of Dalton's head and walked towards the kitchen.

"I am starving Rachel, did you guys eat breakfast already? How come you are here Sam? I thought you are in Lima." Kurt said, looking back at Sam, while pouring himself a cup of coffee. When Sam didn't answer, Kurt looked at him questioningly.  
Sam was still frozen with shock, by realizing that he had a child. He was a father. He had a kid. A son. A son with Rachel. How did this happen? Well obviously he knew HOW a child happens, but how could he had a child and not know about it? How could Rachel have not told him about it? Did Rachel know? 

"Sam?"

"Yes, Lima. I.. I arrived last week." Sam said, waking up from his almost catatonic state. Rachel couldn't know, right? She would have told him. She wouldn't have done this to him, right? Did Blaine knew? Blaine must know! He asked for a picture... Sam felt flabbergasted, Blaine knew. His best friend knew and he didn't say a word.

Sam was seeking Blaine's gaze, but Blaine was still staring at the ground, almost frozen. This was not supposed to happen. What should he say, what could he say to Sam? What would he say to Kurt?

Rachel felt torn, but ultimately followed Kurt into the kitchen. She put Dalton down and offered both of them some breakfast, which they gladly accepted.  
While Kurt and Dalton were happily munching their breakfast, Rachel went back to the front door. Sam and Blaine where still standing there, not sure what to do. When Rachel joined them, Sam's gaze went from Rachel to Blaine. Both were avoiding him.

"Is he...?" Sam whispered, asking the elephant question in the room. No one answered, but they didn't had to. Sam knew the answer by their reaction. Blaine had literally jumped, when Sam had asked. He was trembling and he knew that this was the way Blaine was looking, when he was feeling guilty. Rachel was biting her lower lip - a tell tale sign, that she felt caught.

"You knew." Sam simply stated. He let out a hollow laugh, shook his head and left. He just had to leave. He couldn't be any longer in this house. What was happening - he had a child? How could he have a son? A son of two years? If Rachel would have told him, that she was pregnant with his child three years ago, he would have been at her side in a heartbeat. He would have supported her and he would have been there for her, but this... this situation felt like betrayal. Why would anyone keep THIS from him?

"Sam.. Sam stop!" Rachel finally said, walking after him. He didn't stop. He was walking with fast steps, leaving Rachel far behind. Rachel didn't try to catch up with him, she knew this was not the time. This was not the way it was supposed to happen. Worse, with Sam being aware it was just a question of time until Kurt would knew.

"What are we going to do?" She weakly said, when she re-entered the house.  
"I don't know..." Blaine mumbled, shrugging his shoulders in defeat.

After a short moment of recollecting themselves, they put on brave faces and joined Kurt and Dalton in the kitchen.

"You guys alright? Where did Sam go?" Kurt inquired, when he couldn't spot Sam. He was cutting some cucumbers for Dalton, who was happily shoving the food into his mouth.

"Slow down hamster cheek." Rachel smiled at her son, caressing her son's hair softly.

"Sam had to attend to some business. He said bye." Blaine answered his husbands question, taking a seat. He was lying to Kurt - he didn't feel good about lying, but he didn't see any other option.

***

Hours later Kurt had left to unpack his luggage. Dalton had fallen asleep and was sleeping on Rachel's lap, who gently caressed her son's hair. She was sitting on the couch with Blaine, exchanging deep sighs.

"What are we going to do?" She finally asked, looking at Blaine, hoping that he would have an answer.

"I don't know. To be honest I am glad Sam just left, but he will not leave it at that. I am sure he will be back, wanting answers - and if I am being honest, I understand that." Blaine said. He was playing with his wedding band, turning it around his fingers.

"I feel terrible Blaine. This lying, this isn't us. We don't do that... we can't do that to Kurt. To Sam. It's not fair. I feel like I am living a lie. Every time I look at Kurt I feel so guilty. I can't do that anymore." She was feeling desperate. She loved Kurt like a brother, he was her closest friend, but the past month she had seen him less and less. She didn't feel good in Kurt's company, her guilt dragging her down. With Sam finding out, she knew it was if a pistol was pointed at her. It was just a matter of time until Kurt would find out and he would never forgive them not telling him. He would feel betrayed, hell he had been betrayed and lied too. Rachel valued their friendship so much, but her fear of losing him and Dalton made her risk this valued friendship more than she would ever realize.

"I know. What do you think how I feel? I vowed to Kurt to always be honest to him and now I am lying to him. I am lying about our son and that Dalton is in fact Sam's child. How can we tell Kurt? His whole world would crumble. He would leave me. He would leave us, Rachel. He won't be able to forgive us." Blaine let his face sink in his hands. He felt like crying and screaming at the same time. He felt confused and unsure of what to do. This was not good. In fact this was just terrible.

"It's all my fault. How could I have been so stupid? Why did I sleep with Sam... I am so sorry Blaine." Rachel apologized, feeling tears starting to water her eyes.

"Don't be. Rach, if you hadn't had slept with Sam we wouldn't have conceived our little baby boy. In a twisted and weird sense I am happy you guys had a little encounter, honestly. Could you imagine life without our little sunshine?" Blaine asked, smiling weakly at her. He loved his son, no matter what and yes the situation was terrible, but the silver lining was still that they had Dalton in the first place.

"I can't and I don't want too."

"Kurt will be royally pissed and he has every right to be, but he loves Dalton. I am not sure what will happen with the three of us, but he would never abandon Dalton. He loves him." Blaine knew that Kurt had lost his heart to the little boy, when he was holding him for the first time. Dalton was the innocent party, so he didn't fear for his son. Blaine, however, did fear for his marriage. He feared for their friendship and he never thought, that the ice beneath them could be so thin.

He couldn't imagine how wrong he was.

**

Blaine had left a couple of hours later, after he had helped Rachel to bring Dalton to bed. Rachel and Blaine had watched the sleeping boy for a moment, before letting out deep sighs.  
They didn't know what to do, but they knew they had to do something.

When Blaine had left, Rachel sat down on the couch and had poured herself a glass of wine. She sighed at the sight of the glass.  
"Gee Rachel, continue drinking so much wine and you turn into an alcoholic..." She said to herself bitterly. She was typing a text message into her phone - rather she was trying to type the gazillionth text message, she wanted to send to Sam, but none of her tries came close to anything she wanted to say - she could say.  
In frustration she threw her phone next to her on the sofa, taking a deep gulp of her wine. She was massaging her temples, when a loud knock on the front door made her jump.  
Rachel jumped off the couch and straightened her skirt. She was wondering who was knocking on her door at such an hour. It was a little after 11 pm and neither Blaine nor Kurt would knock at this hour, without texting her first.  
When she opened the door, she was surprised. Surprised didn't really cut it, she was more in shock. A surprised shock? Whatever it was, Rachel was torn about what to feel about the person at the front door - however it was someone she needed to talk to.

"Jesse?"

***

It was an awkward silence between them. They were sitting as far away as possible from each other, on the edge of their chairs in the kitchen.

"I thought you are in Chicago?" Rachel finally said, looking at her husband. He was looking good, much better than he had looked, when he had left. His hair was a little longer - super shiny though, he was wearing a simple white button up shirt and black jeans. He was wearing the black boots she got him last year during a shopping spree in Ohio.

"I was." He replied, looking at her intensely. She was looking back at him, the man she once adored. She did adore him back in high school. She was so smitten with his charm. He was good to her - for a while. He turned out to be an arse, but on some point he got better. He had returned to her life and he was like a glimpse of stardom, like a chance, like a fast track to New York. At least, that's what he seemed to be like. He was the easy way out - of course Rachel did work very hard on her own career, but Jesse did certainly did support it - especially considering that he was the producer of Jane Austen Sings'. Obviously Rachel was - still is - incredibly talented, but knowing the right people never hurt.   
Now all she saw in Jesse was the man she had hurt, the man she had failed, the man she had neglected. Yes it was all her, she had been the one who pushed Jesse away - unknowingly - was it though? Was it really unknowingly? Maybe deep down she knew, Jesse was not the love of her life and he would never be the love of his life. Her first love - the one she had called love of her life - he was dead. Finn Hudson. He could never be replaced, she knew that , but it was someone else who helped her repair her broken heart. Unfortunately it wasn't Jesse. Her heart had been mended by one Sam Evans and now the one who was the love of her life, was her son - the product of her and Sam Evans. 

"I am sorry Jesse." Rachel finally said. The thoughts in her head were crushing her. She didn't know which area of concern she should tackle first. She had to deal with Sam, she had to deal with Kurt, she had to deal with Jesse and she had to deal with her own heart and feelings.

Jesse was looking at her puzzled. "Why are you apologizing?"

"I am sorry that I have been a terrible wife to you. Jesse, I am sorry that I didn't love you the way you deserved it - still deserve it. I am sorry for excluding you from my family - for not acknowledging you as family in the first place. I wronged you and I am sorry for that. I realize that know." She said sighing. Her heart felt a bit lighter, after telling Jesse. Sam was right when he told her, she wasn't fair towards him. He had understood her, even though he had never observed her relation with Jesse. He just knew her.

Jesse gulped. His head sank and he shared a sad smile with Rachel.  
"I see. Wow." Jesse said. "This is a hard bargain. I guess me wanting to try to get back together is not really an option here anymore, is it?"  
Rachel shook her head. "No. It wouldn't be fair Jesse."

"Is there someone else?"

"No, why would you ask that Jesse?" Rachel asked, almost feeling offended. She couldn't believe him - what she did was not okay, but she never betrayed him. 

"Because I am trying to understand Rachel." Jesse said, standing up. "Look, I love you. I do. I am sorry for what I said and I didn't intend for things to end the way they did. I got something really good going on in Chicago and I think you would like it there. Still, I understand you love New York and Dalton is here, but give us a chance Rachel. I know somewhere deep inside you can start loving me again. We can be happy again. You, Dalton and me. Look I am willing to include your son. Let's start over." He put his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it affectionately.

"Jesse..." Rachel had to be honest, she did feel a bit flattered over Jesse's change of heart. Still, she knew she wouldn't be able to be happy with him.

"No Rachel, let me finish first. I am willing to adopt Dalton. Let's be a real family, the three of us. I will adopt him, I will be a father to him. Kurt and Blaine will surely understand - they are part of the family too. I am willing to be more attentive, I want this Rachel - I want you." He was cupping her cheek, dragging her up to face him.  
Rachel had to admit he was being passionate about his speech. Sadly Rachel knew it was too late for them.  
"Rach... please... give us another chance!" Jesse whispered. He cupped her face now with both hands leaning onto her forehead. He was closing his eyes, inhaling her familiar scent. He had realized how much he had missed her, that he indeed loved her more than he could have imagined. His thumbs were softly stroking over her cheeks, trying to pull her closer. Rachel couldn't help herself but lean into Jesse's embrace. After all the stress she felt like this situation wasn't so bad after all - she knew it wasn't right, but in the moment it was a good option to escape the struggles of the moment.  
She was about to give in completely and let Jesse kiss her, when a ring on the bell made them jump apart.

Rachel cleared her throat and walked to open the door. Another visitor at this time? She could hear Jesse following her, probably wondering as much as she did who would visit at this time of the evening.

To say she was surprised was the understatement of the evening. She was even more shocked, than when she opened the door for Jesse.

"Sa... Sam?"

"Rachel. Hi." Sam said with a weak smile. When he had stormed off earlier he had felt hurt and confused - he would be lying, if he would say he would feel any different now - but earlier he couldn't deal with this situation. Now he needed answers. He wanted to believe in Rachel, he wanted to believe that she didn't want to lie to him - he really wanted to be able to trust her, but seeing Jesse behind her made him angry. Very angry in fact.

"What is he doing here?" Sam hissed, staring at Jesse.

"This is my house. Rachel is my wife, what do you think I am doing here?" Jesse hissed back, putting a possessive arm around Rachel. Rachel staring at Sam, wanting to talk to him, shoving Jesse's arm away.

"Sam.. I.."

"It's okay Rachel. I can see what is happening here." Sam snapped. Seeing Jesse hurt him more than he thought it would. He was hurt, he was angry - he was jealous.

"Sam, please.. let me explain. Please, let's talk." She pleaded, desperately wanting to explain the situation.

"Let me just ask you one question Rachel, does everyone know? Or did you not share this little secret with your husband?" Sam snarled. 

"What is he talking about Rachel?" Jesse asked, confusion spreading over his face.

"Sam.. don't." Rachel simply said. She was near tears - this was not the way this was supposed to happen. It really wasn't.

"I guess she didn't tell you then." Sam concluded.

"Tell me what?"

"Dalton is my son." Sam stated. Speaking it out loud made it even more surreal.

"Excuse me what?" Jesse asked. He was shocked, that was a revelation he did not expect.

"Don't." Rachel simply pleaded. The first tear was rolling down her cheek.

"He is my son, isn't he Rachel? You had my child and you didn't think this information should be shared with me? THE FATHER?" Sam was raising his voice, obviously upset.

"What do you mean by Dalton is your son Sam?" A fourth person meddled into the conversation, that became quite loud during that quiet night on the street in front of Rachel's house.

She couldn't help herself, but sob very loudly. She held her hands in front of her mouth, trying not to break down. She was sobbing. Rachel felt her world crumbling down.

"I am so sorry... Sam... Kurt.."


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I don't even know what to say... it has been almost 2 years since I last updated... this chapter also just updates the story to the same chapter, as on ff.net. I really apologize :(  
> I recently rewatched some of Glee's season 6 and got very inspired by it. So I started writing again and decided to finally finish this story. So bear with me!

Rachel was trying to pull herself together, but she couldn't help the tears that were streaming down her face. She was sitting on her couch, feeling alienated. Blaine was sitting next to her, squeezing her hand. Kurt and Sam were sitting across from them, crossing their arms in front of their chests. Jesse was sitting on the side, not sure what he was even doing here anymore.

Nobody knew what to say, trying to let the situation sink in. It all felt like a bad dream to Rachel. Just minutes earlier they were all standing on the street, shouting at each other. It felt like a standoff. It was Blaine who suggested for all of them to continue this discussion indoors.   
The mood was tense and nobody dared to speak. Everyone was on edge, not knowing who would explode first. There were so many unanswered questions in the room.

Rachel's sobs didn't help. Worse was that Blaine was sitting next to her, holding her hand. For Sam it felt like this was a confirmation, that both of them were aware and intentionally withheld this information.  
Kurt didn't know what to think. He was confused, he was angry, he didn't know what to think. Seeing Blaine comforting Rachel seemed wrong. What did they knew, that he didn't? Did he even want to know? Kurt was wondering what to do, deep inside he probably knew what was happening - still this current situation seemed so much like Pandora's Box. If he would open it, a whole lot of bad would turn up - but if he would leave it closed, there would always be that terrible itch called doubt.

"This is nonsense." Kurt finally broke the silence. "There must be some kind of mistake, right?" He decided to leave the box closed. It would be better this way. Wouldn't it be?

"Kurt..." Blaine started, not really knowing what to say.

"Don't Blaine. Just don't!" Kurt replied and gestured him to stop. Kurt took a deep breath, closing his eyes and massaging his temples. He couldn't listen to this, he didn't want to.

"I am so sorry..." Rachel whispered, trying to dry her tears.

"What are you sorry for? This must all be a misunderstanding right? Right? Rachel?" Kurt asked, desperation in his voice.

Rachel couldn't bear to answer and simply shook her head.

"I am out. I don't even know what to say - seriously Rachel, I asked you to come back to me and instead I have to hear that you apparently whored around three years ago. Surrogate, right. Seriously I cannot believe you did this." Jesse sneered, jumping of his chair and leaving. He didn't even yell at her, he was just in disbelief. This situation seemed ridiculous to him - they had almost kissed earlier, he had wanted her back and know he had to realize that his wife had cheated on her.

"Don't you dare call her a whore! What the hell dude?! YOU are such a SCUMBAG, seriously!" Sam jumped to Rachel's defence, calling Jesse out. Yes he was hurt, yes he was confused - but he couldn't stand anyone insulting her. He couldn't help himself, but Rachel was still very important to him - even after all these years, even after coming to realize she had hidden his son from him... maybe he would change his opinion, when he had heard her out. That was, after all, the reason he was here in the first place.

"Wow, how great is that? So what, you guys had an affair the whole time? Did you know? You SCREWED my wife and you must be so happy I am gone, what? Did she tell you we were kissing just now? See what kind of a WHORE she is?" Jesse asked his finger poking repeatedly into Sam's chest. Blaine could have sworn he saw a rage vein pulsing ferociously on Sam's forehead and maybe he was right, because Sam was pushing Jesse forcefully away from him.

"Don't touch me! You never deserved Rachel! You are just some self-absorbed, self-enamoured jerk, who cares about nothing and no one. Even less so Rachel - you neglected her, you hurt her, you ignored her feelings." Sam replied, towering over Jesse. It probably helped that he was probably about three to four inch taller than him.

"And you do deserve her? Aren't you just upset, that Rachel chose me years ago? She chose me over you and you were never able to get over it, isn't it? You know what, Sam? I don't give a damn anymore, you can have her - I am done with her. I am through with all this shit!" Jesse said, storming out of the house. They had to admit, Jesse really was a diva - because this storm out was legendary diva manoeuvre.

Sam was fuming. He wanted to hit Jesse and it cost him all his control to not lose his cool. He was walking around in circles, making the other even more tense.

"Sit down."  
Sam was pacing, really. This situation was so tricky.

"SIT!" Kurt yelled at Sam, who stopped in his motion, looking at him in shock. Sam however did oblige and sat down.

"Rachel, I don't understand. Please explain." Kurt finally said, trying to be as calm as possible.

Rachel, who was silent the entire time of Jesse's and Sam's "discussion", sat up to look at her best friend.  
"I didn't know Kurt - you have to believe me. I am so sorry. I am sorry Sam, I didn't mean to do that - to neither one of you." She said as calm as possible. "I really thought Dalton is your son Kurt, yours or Blaines. Sam and I we had a.. well we slept with each other at Quinn's and Noah's wedding and maybe you remember, that was about two to three weeks before the insemination. I didn't know I was pregnant then already and when they confirmed my pregnancy I really believed it was because of the insemination." She explained further. They had to believe she didn't do it intentionally, she never meant to hurt anyone.

Kurt took a deep breath.

"How long did you know?"

"Kurt.. please you have to understand. Rachel didn't know. She didn't want to harm anyone." Blaine said in Rachel's defence.

"HOW LONG?" Kurt raised his voice, gripping his chair so tight, that the white of his knuckles were showing.

"Since we went to the central park zoo..." Rachel replied softly.

Kurt let out a ironic chuckle. "Are you serious? You knew for over six weeks? And you didn't think that is something you should have shared with me?" Kurt obviously disappointed, redirected his gaze towards Blaine.  
"Did you know? Tell me you didn't know, Blaine!"

"I can't..." Blaine whispered. He was feeling terribly guilty for lying to his husband and he knew Kurt would not be able to forgive him. Kurt was probably boiling inside.

"That's why you needed the picture, wasn't it?" Sam finally said, eyeing his best friend.

"Yes - I am sorry Sam. I had to confirm for myself, that it was true." Blaine replied. "I confronted Rachel with the fact that Dalton looks like toddler Sam, Kurt."

"And you didn't think it was relevant to tell me about it?" Kurt asked. He could feel the anger boiling up, the feeling of betrayal.

"Kurt... you must believe me, when I tell you that it wasn't intentional. We didn't want to hurt you." Blaine tried to reason with his husband, pleading with him to understand.

"You didn't want to hurt me? Are you serious Blaine? Maybe you should have told me then, maybe YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME, THAT MY SON IS NOT ACTUALLY MY SON!" Kurt yelled. He couldn't help himself anymore. What the hell was happening? Blaine was his husband, he was supposed to be honest to him. He was supposed to be on his side and not betray him. And Rachel.... she was his best friend, how could she keep such a secret from him? This was not okay, this was not fair!

"AND YOU RACHEL! HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME? YOU ARE MY BEST FRIEND! My best friend... and now.. now you are telling me that you are sorry, that my son - MY SON - is actually Sam's?" Kurt couldn't believe them.

"Kurt.." Sam said, putting a hand on Kurt's shoulder, who brushed him off.

"No Sam, no! Don't YOU have anything to say to this? They didn't tell your either..."

"Kurt... please stop. Sam I am so sorry - to both of you. Listen I never meant for this to happen, but can we not find a solution? For Dalton's sake?" Rachel pleaded with both of them.

"You cannot be serious Rachel. For Dalton's sake? The boy who is not even my son?" Kurt hissed.  
Blaine gasped at his husband's word and he felt Rachel tense next to him.

"Kurt... you did not just mean that..." Blaine said.

"Blaine.. you.. I cannot even... you knew Blaine, you knew! How could you know and not tell me? Is there anything else I should know? While we are at telling the truth, what else happened? Did you had another affair? Did you screw around with someone else?" Kurt snarled angrily. He was surprised at how calm he was, but his words were like cutting knifes.

"STOP! Stop it Kurt!" Blaine exclaimed. "You are hurt, I get it - but don't say things you are going to regret later."

"Things I WILL REGRET? ARE YOU KIDDING ME BLAINE? YOU KNEW! YOU BETRAYED ME! YOU AND RACHEL!" Kurt jumped of his chair, glaring angrily at his husband. "YOU MUST THINK OF ME AS A DAMN JOKE! DID YOU LAUGH? DID YOU THINK IT WAS FUNNY? DID YOU THINK I WOULDN'T MIND RAISING SOMEONE ELSE'S CHILD?" Kurt had enough, did they think he was a fool? They could not just put a child in his hand and pretend it was his. He wanted his own kid and not someone else's.

"Kurt don't go there, I am begging you..." Blaine pleaded. He knew his husband was hurting and he would lie, if he didn't understand - but what he was saying about Dalton - alienating him - was not okay. Worse, Blaine knew that if Kurt wouldn't stop, he would drag Rachel to a point of no return. A point where Rachel would go all tiger mommy on him.

"GO WHERE BLAINE? YOU KNEW AND YOU WITHOLD THIS INFORMATION FROM ME! DON'T YOU THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IMPORTANT FOR ME TO KNOW, THAT THE CHILD WE RECEIVED FROM RACHEL WAS IN FACT" Kurt hesitated for a moment, knowing that he would regret his next words, nevertheless he couldn't help himself but say it, "HER CUCKOO'S EGG THAT SHE NEEDED TO GET RID OFF. SHE PLANTED A FAKE SON IN OUR ARMS!"

"Get out!" It was only a low hiss, but everyone had heard it. Heads were turning towards the shaking, petite figure on the sofa. Rachel couldn't believe what Kurt had said. She had tried to be understanding, she had tried to be apologetic - but Kurt had crossed the line. She understood that he was hurt, but she did not do it intentionally. In fact she hadn't known that Dalton was Sam's son either, until a couple of weeks ago. Accusing her of knowing, of wanting to get rid of her one night stands "product" was not only offensive, it was absolutely brazen. Even worse, how could Kurt call her son a cuckoo's egg? Something unwanted, when Dalton was the most precious thing in Rachel's life.

"Rachel.." Blaine tried to sooth his friend, by squeezing her hand, but it was to no avail. Rachel was staring right at Kurt.  
"GET OUT! DON'T YOU EVER DARE TO SPEAK LIKE THIS ABOUT MY SON, EVER AGAIN!" She yelled at Kurt, anger glimmering in her eyes.

Kurt was surprised by her outrage. He was taken aback, as he hadn't expected it. Still he obliged, he was to angry and to proud to admit that he might had overstepped the line. Without any other word Kurt simply left. The front door made a loud bang and Rachel was visibly shaken.  
"I am sorry, I am sure he didn't mean it Rach." 

"He did Blaine. He meant every word of it." Her voice was unusually cold and steady. She was wiping her tears away and sniffing her nose.   
Blaine was affectionately squeezing her hand. He sighed heavily. This was far from over and he didn't expect it to go this way. Still, at the moment he had to comfort Rachel and there was still Sam, who was scarily silent.

Sam in fact did follow the whole conversation. After his heated discussion with Jesse, he had tried to gather as many information as possible. He had to admit that Kurt's outburst did shock him - on the other hand he could understand it. Still the way Kurt handled the situation was not okay. He understood Rachel was upset and well, he was just torn. He was disappointed that his friends didn't tell him, but on the other hand they hadn't known for that long either, did they now? Sam sighed, he was torn but at the moment he had to give them the benefit of doubt.

"Rachel," Sam started finally, looking at her he admitted: "I don't know what to think."

She nodded slightly. "Sam I am sorry for what happened and for what you had to experience. I never intended for you or Kurt to be hurt. I honestly didn't know that Dalton is yours and when I knew, when Blaine confronted me - this was a situation we had to wrap our heads around ourselves first."

"Sam you have to believe me, we didn't want to keep this from you. When I asked you for your picture, I wasn't sure myself and before I could tell you I had to ask Rachel. I had to speak to Kurt and well you see that didn't went well at all. I didn't mean to hurt you and I hope you can forgive me." Blaine said. He was feeling already terrible about the issues with his spouse, he really needed his best friend to forgive him.

"Blaine. Rachel. I... I feel overwhelmed. I don't know what to think, because I have just realized I have a two year old son. I am confused, I am upset and I am angry." Sam said. He could see how Blaine's and Rachel's shoulders were sinking in defeat. Luckily Sam wasn't finished yet. Also he had to congratulate himself for having such a calm and steady voice. The only reason for that, was probably that he thought of himself being in some kind of super odd dream.

"I would be lying though, if I said I couldn't understand your reasoning. You probably felt the same confusion I did. I want to believe you Rachel, that you didn't know until recently and that you would not have cut me out of my son's life, if you would have known from the beginning. You would have told me, right?"

"I would have." She replied, giving Sam a weak smile. She was grateful that Sam at least tried to understand the situation.

Sam just wanted to reply to Rachel, when a little voice interrupted them.

"Mommy...?" Dalton was standing at the door frame of the living room, tightly clutching his little bunny. He was looking incredibly sad, tears in his eyes. He must had woken up a while ago - no wonder with all the yelling that had happened.  
Rachel was immediately up to hug her son. She could only hope that he hadn't heard what had happened down here. She could only hope, that he hadn't heard what Kurt had said.

"Hey buddy, what are you doing up?" Blaine asked walking over to Rachel and Dalton. He was kneeling in front of his son and stroking his cheek.

"Mommy... Dada why were you yelling with Papi?" Of course he had heard Kurt yelling. How couldn't he have - probably the whole neighbourhood had heard them.  
"Nothing you need to worry about. We are sorry that you woke up, buddy!" Blaine said, trying to soothe his sons obvious worries.  
"But why were you yellin'? Mommy said yellin' is no good." Dalton stated. Sometimes Rachel thought her son was too smart for his own good. He was sharp and observing and it hurt Rachel, that those qualities where hurting him now.

"Baby, mommy, papi and dada had some miscommunications. You don't have to worry, okay?" Rachel smiled at her son, who slowly nodded. Dalton yawned and rubbed his eyes, clearly being tired. "Okay, how about we get you back to bed?"

"Rachel let me. You go and talk to Sam." Blaine said, taking Dalton in his arms. Rachel placed a kiss on Daltons head and let Blaine take the little boy up the stairs to his bedroom. 

Rachel sat down back with Sam in the living room.

"He really looks like me." His gaze was following Blaine, who was carrying Dalton to his room. He still couldn't believe he had a son.

"Do you want to get to know him?" Sam's eyes went straight to Rachel. He hadn't expected her to offer this. When he thought about her words, he knew he wanted to. He really wanted to get to know Dalton and.. and Rachel. Maybe this was the chance, he was waiting for.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is - the final chapter. This story deserved to get an ending. Beware this chapter is quite long - there was still a lot left to tell :)  
> Enjoy!

It had been a month since the big reveal of Dalton's parentage. Kurt had left New York the next morning and gone home to Burt and Carol. He hadn't said a word and Blaine was freaking out, as he didn't know where Kurt was. When he had received the call from Carol, he had felt relieved. Blaine had explained the situation to her and she had promised Blaine to speak to Kurt.

Rachel and Sam had decided to get 100% sure, if Sam really was Dalton's father and submitted DNA to confirm the parentage (not that anyone doubted this at this point anymore).  
Sam had further decided to take on Rachel's offer to get to know Dalton and had since then been spending quite a big deal of time together with Rachel and Dalton. At first it was weird, as Rachel and Sam didn't know how to act around each other, as even though Sam tried to be understanding, he was still hurt. Still, he had decided to be as forgiving as possible and to get along with her. In the end, Sam figured, his feelings for Rachel must have been stronger, than his disappointment and confusion about this situation. He decided to give her the benefit of the doubt.   
As for Dalton it was weird at first with him. The little boy was shy around Sam at first, not knowing what this unknown man wanted from him and why he suddenly spent so much time with him and Rachel. Further Dalton was confused, why he hadn't seen Kurt for such a long time. He clearly missed his Papi and had expressed this several times. Dalton was sensing that something was wrong and started to become very clingy around Blaine and Rachel.  
After a month of spending every day with Sam for a couple of hours, Dalton however opened up towards Sam. He started to look forward to the quality time he spent with Sam. Sam was amazing with Dalton, he could spend hours playing with him. Sam didn't mind indulging in Lego building sessions and role playing with those Lego models. He had an amazing imagination, that he used to play with Dalton and his action figures and he was simply terrific in teaching Dalton hilarious impressions of Scooby Doo (which was their favourite TV show, they watched every day).  
Rachel loved watching them together and with each second looking at them, she saw more and more similarities between them. When either of them had to sneeze, they both wiggled their nose in the same cute way afterwards. When they had to yawn, they used to stretch and put the back of their right hand in front of their mouth. They both loved sleeping on the back, while putting their right hand underneath their head and scratching their stomach with their left hand (Rachel was able to observe this, when Dalton and Sam had played outside with a ball and had simply passed out in front of the TV). It was adorable.

Today Rachel, Sam and Dalton were planning to go to the zoo together. Surprisingly they both were super excited seeing the penguins, which made Rachel laugh. Seeing them together she knew, they had to be father and son - there was no denial. Dalton was a mini version of Sam.  
Even though Rachel enjoyed watching them spending time with each other, she felt bad towards Blaine, who hadn't spent a lot of time with them in this past month. For one he wanted to give Sam the chance to get to know Dalton, without his interference and on the other hand he had tried to get in touch with Kurt, to try and mend things. Kurt had ignored him, as he was clearly still hurt and angry.

Rachel, Sam and Dalton where about to leave, when Blaine met them at the front door.  
"Hey guys! Hey buddy!" Blaine greeted them, hugging a very excited Dalton, who ran into his arms.  
"DADA!"

"Blaine, good to see you! How are you? How is Kurt?" Rachel asked smiling at him.

"I actually wanted to talk to you about this, Rach. Do you have some time?"

"Dada, we go see penwins! Dada come too?" Dalton said, excitement sparkling in his eyes.

"Yes, why don't you join us Blaine and then we can talk?" Rachel replied. 

"Sure, if you don't mind I would love to. Sam, is that okay with you?"

"Of course Blaine, why wouldn't it be?" Sam encouragingly smiled and placed a hand on Blaine's shoulder. They hadn't talked much since this past month, but at the end of the day Blaine was his best friend. He was like a brother to him and was does family do best? Forgive.

***

When they arrived at the zoo Dalton was very excited and had difficulties to decide where to go first. Of course he wanted to see the penguins, but Rachel reminded him, that the penguin house was in the middle of the zoo and that there were many animals before.  
Dalton decided to see the rhinos first, who were close by. Sam was pushing Dalton's stroller, while Blaine and Rachel were falling behind talking.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Rachel asked. 

"They really did bond, didn't they?" Blaine asked, looking at Sam, who had taken Dalton out of his stroller and put on his shoulders, so the little boy had a better view on the animals. Blaine had an almost sad smile, when he saw his son putting his little fingers on Sam's head, laughing out of joy.

"They did. Sam is really amazing with Dalton and Dalton... well I think he is absolutely in awe with Sam." Rachel replied. The picture in front of her made her smile. Months back she had always wished Jesse would be like this with Dalton. Seeing Sam being so natural with Dalton and both of them being so affectionate with each other, made her heart jump a little. Sam was amazing. Why hadn't she seen this years ago? Why had she had ever broken up with a man, who was this wonderful with his son? Her heart was flattered. Rachel was wondering, if this was something women felt (maybe maternal instincts?), when seeing men who were being good fathers.

"But Blaine," Rachel started, looking at Blaine and placing a hand on his arm, "don't forget that you are Dalton's dad. He loves you and I know you love him. This will never change!" 

Blaine gave her a weak smile and put his hand over hers.  
"I really love him, Rach. I don't want to lose my son and I don't want to lose my husband. This is why I have to fly down to Lima and speak to Kurt. I trust you to take care of our son and when I come back I hope we can go back to normal."

"Blaine, I am not sure that is possible. What Kurt said.. I am not sure if I can forgive that." She sighed. This fight with Kurt was terrible, she didn't want to fight with her best friend, but what he had said about Dalton was unforgivable. 

"Rach, he was.. he is hurt. Try to understand him too, please."

"I do understand that he is hurt, but he insulted Dalton. What he said.. no I am sorry Blaine, but he crossed the line!" She understood Kurt, she would have understood him insulting her, him yelling at her for her mistakes, but insulting her son? Absolute no-go. She was a mother and if there was something you should never do with a mother, is attacking their children.

"Well I hope you will be able to forgive him eventually. Anyways, Rach - I needed to tell you that I will go to Lima until I sorted out the issues with Kurt. I will talk to Dalton as well, so he understands, why we won't see each other for a bit."

"Do that Blaine. And Blaine, I don't want you to feel left out, okay?"  
Blaine hugged Rachel and whispered a "Thank you" in her ear, before walking up to Sam and Dalton. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with his son, before he was leaving in the morning.

***

Blaine let out a deep sigh. He was anxious of what was laying in front of him and he was miserable for what he was leaving behind - even if it was only temporary or at least he hoped so.  
He pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Another sigh left him. When he closed his eyes he would only see the crying face of his very upset son.  
Dalton had taken it very hard, when Blaine told him that he would be gone for a while. The little boy just couldn't understand why everyone was leaving and not returning.   
Seeing the tears falling down his little eyes broke Blaine's heart. He had scooped up his son and pulled him in a tight hug. The little shoulders were shaking uncontrollable. Blaine placed a soft kiss on his sons head and whispered in his ear. "Hey Buddy, don't be upset. Dada will be back. We can see each other every day on mommy's phone, okay? I promise, I will be back!"  
He could see the little boy slightly nodding, but the crying didn't stop.  
Blaine remembered he had hugged his son for a while, until he finally passed out being too exhausted from all that crying.

When he had left for the airport it was too early to see his son. Now hours later he had finally arrived in Ohio. It wouldn't be long until he would finally see Kurt. It would be difficult - that was probably quite the understatement. Blaine sighed yet again and took his phone out of his pocket. A quick talk with his son would lift up his spirit a bit and would help him prepare for his confrontation with his husband.

"Blaine! Did you land already?" The cheerful face of Rachel appeared on the little screen of his phone.  
"Yes, I am just waiting for my luggage and though I quickly call to speak to Dalton. Is he around?"  
"Sure, hold on a second. Dalton, look your dad is on the phone." A close up of a little nose suddenly appeared on the screen, followed by a chuckle of Rachel. "Wait a second baby. Come back here, sit on mommy's lap and then look over there. There is your dad, see?"   
"Dada!" "Hey buddy" Blaine smiled at the face of his son, that was looking very concentrated into the screen. "How are you buddy? I miss you!" "Dada come home?" Blaine could see how the little hand of his son tried to grab him. Obviously that didn't work and Blaine could see Daltons face turning into a confused grimace.  
"Dad is going to visit Gran Carol and Gramps Burt for a bit. I will be home next week buddy, okay? I will call you before you go to bed tonight, okay?" "Pwomise?" "Promise! Dad's gonna go bud. I will talk to you later. I love you!"  
Blaine waved into the screen and smiled when his son and Rachel mimicked his motion. After a quick goodbye from Rachel and Dalton he hung up and made his way to exit the airport (he did pick his suitcase up first, of course).

***

"Hey Rach - do you want some cocoa?" Sam called from the kitchen, where he was sitting with Dalton. He was just pouring some warm cocoa into Daltons sippy cup and handed it to the two-year old who happily accepted.  
"Sure, thanks!" Rachel said, entering the kitchen. She pressed a kiss on Dalton's hair crown and gave Sam a bright smile, when he handed her a cup.

Sam was being almost daily at Rachel's and they all seemed to enjoy it. It was so natural to have Sam walking around the house. Rachel hadn't felt that happy in a while. Sam was caring, Sam was sweet and lovely. He was great with Dalton, who absolutely adored Sam.

"Dalton, it's almost time for bed okay?" Rachel said softly and stroke through her sons blonde locks. The two-year old was not looking to happy and eagerly shook his head. "NO!"   
"Hey buddy, how about I read you a bedtime story?" Sam intervened, before Rachel was able to say something. Dalton seemed to think hard about Sam's offer and after a few seconds he nodded in agreement. "Rainbow fishy!" Dalton exclaimed and Sam had to laugh. He had read Dalton the story of the "Rainbow fish" probably about a thousand times and the little boy still wanted to listen to it over and over again. The "Rainbow fish" had been Sam's favourite story as a little boy and he had always thought back about those wonderful times, when his Nana read it to him.  
"Sure thing buddy!" Sam replied. Rachel mouthed a silent "thank you" towards Sam. 

After they finished their cocoa Rachel gave Dalton a quick bath and made him bed-ready. After a quick talk with Blaine, Rachel tugged Dalton into his bed. She was leaning onto the doorframe and was watching Sam, who was sitting on top of Daltons bed. The little boy was snuggling into Sam's side, who had put his arm onto the little boy and hold him close. Sam was reading the "Rainbow fish" to his son using the best of his impressions, to make the story as entertaining as possible. Dalton was trying to listen attentively, but his eyelids were fluttering heavily as sleep was slowly lulling him in.  
Dalton was fast asleep, when Sam finally closed the book. He carefully got up the bed and put the blanket over Dalton. Sam was already walking towards the door, when he suddenly decided to go back to the sleeping child, bend over and place a kiss on his forehead.  
"Sweet dreams buddy" Sam whispered.

Rachel's heart melted at the scene in front of her. Seeing Sam and Dalton together made her heart flutter. It was beautiful how close the two of them had become and how much Sam adored Dalton. It made her regret once more, that she had left Sam back then. 

She was deep in her thoughts, when Sam suddenly stood in front of her, cupping her cheek. He gently stroked her cheek with his thumb and smiled at her. She leaned into his warm touch, smiling at him. Their eyes met, gazing deep into each other. She felt her heart thumb loudly in her chest. Sam was so close, his lips where just inches away from hers.  
She bit her lower lip anxiously. Her gaze falling from his eyes to his lips and back up to his eyes. His head bent down, his forehead pressing against hers.  
"Hey..." he whispered softly. His nose nudging hers softly. Rachel felt the electrifying touch of his second hand, slowly stroking up her arm, leaving her in shivers. His hand grabbed her neck, his thumb softly stroking her jawline.  
"Sam..." Rachel whispered, her arms moving up to his middle, her body unconsciously moving closer to him. Her lips were quivering, she wanted to feel those soft and luscious lips on her own. She wanted to feel him tugging her lower lips, devouring her.  
Her right hand moved up his chest, behind his neck, to pull him closer towards her. She wanted to overcome the small distance between their lips. Their breaths grew heavy full of want and need. His lips were hovering over hers. She could feel her hot breath on her, their lips almost touching. She just wanted to lean in, overcome the distance, when a sudden ring of her phone made them jump. They awkwardly jumped away from each other. Sam cleared his throat. He straightened out his shirt and looked at a flushed Rachel, who moved away from the door and picked up her phone.

"This is Rachel speaking.." she answered, not really paying attention to her phone, but rather eying Sam. Sam quietly closed Dalton's bedroom door and motioned down the stairs. Rachel nodded and followed him downstairs.  
"Hello? Who is this?" She asked into the phone, when nobody answered. She was on the middle of the stairs, when she stopped in the middle of her motions.  
"Rach, you okay?" Sam asked, when he realized that Rachel seemed to freeze.

On the other side of the phone, a heavy sigh was followed by: "Rachel.. it's me. It's Kurt."

"Kurt." Rachel repeated sharply.  
Sam was looking at Rachel alerted from the bottom of the stairs. He raised his eyebrow questioningly. After her initial shock of Kurt calling, Rachel walked down the rest of the stairs, grabbing Sam's bicep in support. He led her to the living room, where they both sat down on the sofa.

"Rachel.. I am sorry." Kurt began. Rachel could hear the heaviness and guilt in his voice. She knew he was being sincere. She had missed listening to his voice. She had missed her best friend, but she was still hurt. She was hurt in behalf of her child and sorry just didn't cut it.  
"Rachel I was out of line, I realize that now. I am sorry for lashing out to the most innocent person... Dalton didn't.. he doesn't deserve that. I know sorry doesn't cut it, but I want you to know that I am." Kurt said. She could see him in front of her inner eye, that he was closing his eyes and let out a deep sigh, feeling relieved about getting a heavy load of his chest.  
"Listen Rach.. I just want you to know, I regret what I did, but I still am not sure how to handle this situation." Kurt paused, as if he was trying to sort his feelings.  
Rachel's initial anger had faded. When Blaine left a couple of days ago she was still very much upset with Kurt, but hearing his voice, hearing him apologizing the anger, the hurt was only half as bad. She realized, Kurt leaving, leaving this situation so unsolved, hurt her equally, as what he had said. She had missed him so much, she needed her best friend. She needed the one person, she was always able to pour her heart to.  
"Kurt..." Rachel began, but got interrupted by Kurt. "Rach.. please just listen. I just need to get this all of my chest." She stopped talking immediately, but listening to Kurt's tone made her feel uneasy. Sam must have realized that, because he took her hand into hers, softly stroking it and calming her down. She squeezed his hand gratefully and gave him a weak smile.  
"Rach I need you to know, I love you. You are my family and I care for you. I care for Dalton, but I am still confused over everything. I am not sure, how to deal with this situation. I know I crossed the line and I hope you will find it in yourself to forgive me one day. I cherish our friendship. I need you to know however, that I am not sure how to deal with the situation with Dalton. I will be honest with you, I am hurt, I am confused and I feel alienated. I don't know how to change my feelings and I can't tell you, if my feelings will change. I do know, that I cannot be in New York at the moment. I need time for myself. I talked to Blaine and I told him the same. I need time to clear my thoughts. I decided to take a trip - alone. I don't know how long I will be gone or where I am going, but I know I need to do this. To find myself again. This is a healing process. I need time to process.. my relationship with Blaine - or rather my marriage with him. Dalton.. Sam... you... it's a lot to handle and take in. I hope you can understand and eventually forgive me." Silence. There was a heavy silence on both sides. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, Rachel said: "I am sorry too."  
It was enough for both sides. They knew they were far from okay and there was still a lot to talk about, but this was a start. They knew they would heal. It might take a lot of time, but they were on the road of recovery.

When Rachel hung up, Sam eyed her curiously.  
"Everything okay, Rach?"  
"That was Kurt..." She said softly, looking at her hand, that was still intertwined with Sam's. "He apologized.."  
"That's a good thing right? I mean I know what he said wasn't okay, but you know how he can be. I am sure he didn't mean it. He misses you and Dalton." Sam encouragingly squeezed Rachel's hand.  
"I don't know Sam... I honestly don't know. I am glad he called and apologized, but there is still a lot to talk about.. but yes... it's a step in the right direction. He is not coming back though.. at least not yet."  
"What do you mean he is not coming back?"  
"He is going on a trip by himself. He said he wasn't sure when he would be coming back and where he would be going. Hopefully he will be okay." Rachel let out a heavy sigh and scooted closer to Sam. She put her forehead against Sam's shoulder, craving his warmth and comfort. He put his arm around her, pulling her closer in to his comforting embrace. His chin was resting on her head, his arm softly rubbing her back.  
"He will be fine. But what about Blaine? Is he going with Kurt?"  
"No, Kurt is going by himself. I assume Blaine will come home soon... I hope they will be alright. I was.. am... I am still upset with Kurt and will take some time until I can completely forgive him, but I hope he and Blaine will sort everything out. I can't be responsible for my best friends getting a divorce.." She was clearly upset. Yes Kurt had crossed a line with his hurtful words, but she had messed up first... if she had never slept with Sam this mess would have never happened. On the other hand, Dalton would have never existed and she couldn't and didn't want to imagine a life without her little prince.  
Rachel took a deep breath, inhaling Sam's scent - a mixture of wood and musk - the smell of home. After speaking to Kurt she felt like a heavy weight had been taken off her shoulders, she felt how the stress, the fear and anger of the last couple of weeks finally took her toll. She was exhausted. In Sam's arms she felt so safe and peaceful, that she closed her eyes and sleep overcame her within seconds.

***

It was Friday morning when Blaine finally returned from Lima, Ohio. He had been gone for a week and he looked exhausted, worn out. His shoulder hung low, he had deep, dark circles and heavy bags underneath his eyes. Rachel knew he had cried, so all she did, when he was standing in front of her door, was opening her arms. He practically threw herself into her arms, hugging her so tightly, as if his life depended on it. He buried his face into the crook of her neck, letting the tears flow.  
They didn't have to speak. She understood Blaine without words. She drew soothing circles on his backs and held him for what felt like an eternity.  
"He left..." Blaine finally whispered.  
"I know. I am so sorry Blaine", she replied, pressing a kiss on his ear. She felt responsible for her friends loss. Her heart broke seeing Blaine like this. She knew Blaine and Kurt had had so many ups and downs, but they always managed to overcome them. She hoped, they would overcome this as well.   
"Rach what am I going to do without him? What am I going to do, if he is not coming back?" Heartbroken.. how many times could a person survive a heartbreak until it was shattered in so many pieces, that nothing could put it back together? Rachel wondered. No, she shouldn't wonder about this. Of course Kurt would come back. Kurt and Blaine would always come back to each other. They were meant to be with each other.  
"He will come back. He needs time, but he will be back. He can't live without you Blaine. You guys love each other !" Rachel said encouragingly, hugging her friend closer.  
"I hope you are right..." Blaine replied. He stepped out of Rachel's embrace and wiped the tears from his face. "Thank you for being here!" He finally said and placed a kiss on her cheek.  
"Always." She simply replied with a smile.

Blaine closed the door behind him and followed Rachel into the kitchen, where she made them some tea.  
"Where is Dalton?" Blaine asked curiously, as he realized that he neither seen nor heard his whirlwind of a son.  
"He is taking a nap upstairs, but I should wake him up, otherwise he won't be able to sleep tonight", Rachel replied, handing Blaine a cup of tea. She motioned Blaine to follow her and went upstairs into Dalton's bedroom. The picture before her was heart-warming.  
Sam and Dalton were passed out on the bed. Dalton was closely snuggled into Sam's site, who had a protective arm around the little boy. They both had their left arm thrown over their faces, covering their eyes. Their left legs were slightly angled - they looked adorable.  
"They have the same sleeping habits.." Blaine whispered and chuckled quietly.  
"Yes.. they are so similar." Rachel confirmed. In the past weeks she was able to observe more and more similarities between father and son. It was adorable.  
"Hey Rach... would you mind, if I would take Dalton for the weekend? I would like to spend some quality time with him. Just him and me, if you don't mind." Blaine asked carefully. He had missed his son and he had the uneasy feeling, that he might not have the chance to spend as much time with Dalton, as he would like to.

"Of course! He would love that. He missed you terribly!" She smiled at Blaine. She cherished the scene in front of her a moment longer, until she walked over to the sleeping pair to softly wake them up.  
"Baby... wake up... look who is back..." she said softly. She put a knee on the bed, close to Sam to reach her son's shoulder. She stroke his arm and could see, how her son was slowly waking up. He was grimacing, like he was fighting to wake up and just continue to sleep. She giggled at his attempt to ignore her. Suddenly an arm snaked around her waist and pulled her down to the bed. It was Sam who had also slowly waken up und pulled her to his chest.

"Shh... Rach... let's sleep a little longer..." her mumbled. "Sammy... you have to wake up too. Come on you guys! Dalton baby, dad is home!" She said, pushing herself off the bed and Sam's chest (even though rather unwillingly).  
"Hey buddy..." Blaine chimed in, approaching the other side of the bed. "Dada...?" Dalton mumbled groggily, trying to slowly open his eyes. The second he realized his dad was standing next to him, the little boy was fully awake and throwing himself towards his father.  
"DADA! Dada is home!" Blaine laughed happily when his son threw himself into his arms. His spirits were instantly lifted and Blaine felt a lot better. "Hey my little monkey, I missed you too!" He laughed and pulled his son close. His baby boy still loved him. He didn't forget about him, after spending so much time with his real father. Blaine felt relieved.  
"I miss dada too!" Dalton replied. His little eyes were sparkling full of glee. Rachel and Sam, who had also woken up and gotten out of bed, were observing the scene. They were happy seeing this little reunion.  
"Baby, would you like to sleep over at your dads? He wants to spend the whole weekend just with you", Rachel said to her son. Daltons face lifted up in to a huge smile and he nodded encouragingly. "Yes! Papi too?" He asked hopefully. "No buddy, just you and me. Is that okay?" Blaine asked, his heart feeling heavy - his son missed his Papi as much as Blaine missed him.  
Dalton looked a little disappointed with the answer, but nodded shortly after. He was happy, that his dad came back and wanted to spend time with him. His little heart couldn't bear anymore loss, so Blaine's return had a very positive impact on him.

Rachel changed Daltons clothes, while Blaine and Sam catched up. The four of them decided to have dinner together to talk some more, before the parted ways.  
Blaine and Dalton left to their house next door, leaving Rachel and Sam cleaning up the kitchen.

"Hey Rach.." Sam started, drying off a plate. "Hm?" She hummed, looking at him.  
"Let's go out." "Go out? Like friends that go to a bar?" She asked. Going out would be nice. She hadn't had the chance to mingle with other adults, since Dalton was staying with her for the past weeks. It was weird, before her world came crushing down, she used to go out frequently - either with friends or with Jesse. She hadn't missed it in particular, but she wouldn't mind either.  
"Sure let's go to a bar, let's have a drink and just enjoy ourselves." Sam replied.  
"Can I change first?" She asked, looking down at herself. These past weeks she had changed her high heels for flats and her skirts for comfy jeans. Today she was not even wearing jeans, but leggings and a comfy sweater - certainly not an outfit for a bar.  
"You look beautiful the way you are, but sure you can", Sam said, winking at her. Rachel slightly blushed.  
"Thanks.. I will be back in a sec!" Rachel jogged to her walking closet, that was located in the master bedroom. She quickly changed into a black pair of tight leather jeans and a black see-through blouse. Underneath she wore a lacy bralette, that hugged her curves in all the right places. The outfit was racy, but not revealing. She put on a pair of black stilettos, put on some golden accessories and freshened up her makeup. As a final touch up she applied a coat of dark red lipstick.

When she walked down the stairs to meet Sam, his jaw literally dropped. She looked absolutely stunning.   
"Wow - you look gorgeous!" He complimented and she really did. She shyly smiled at him. "Thanks. Shall we go?"  
Sam nodded, grabbed her coat and helped her putting it on. 

***

They ended up in a fancy bar downtown. The place was packed with people enjoying themselves. It wasn't Sam's style, but he only had eyes for Rachel, hence he didn't care where they went, as long as they were together.   
He had gotten them drinks, which they enjoyed at the bar talking. After some time Rachel had jumped off her bar stool and pulled Sam on to the dance floor.  
That is where they had been the last hour - dancing.   
It had started absolutely innocently - two friends enjoying themselves. They were dancing to the beats of a Bruno Mars song moving to the beats of the song. With time however they moved closer towards each other, touching each other.  
Sam was embracing her from behind, moving to the rhythm of a song - which one he couldn't say. It was a slow beat. His left hand rested on her belly, while his right was on her hip. She leaned into his embrace, feeling his broad chest. Her right arm was sneaked into his neck, her left on top of his arm. Their hand intertwined. His lips were brushing her ear, his hot breath tickling her neck. Their hips were moving with the rhythm, grinding against each other.  
Rachel felt hot. She had goose bumps and wherever Sam touched her, she felt like her skin was on fire. She felt his lips moving down her neck, plastering her with soft kisses. A soft moan escaped her lips. She wanted him. She needed him. Her whole body was screaming for him to touch her. And Sam must have noticed it. He turned her around in his arms, so that they would face each other. His hands both moved up to her face, cupping her cheeks in his hands. His forehead was resting against hers, his eyes gazing into hers longingly. She could feel his breath on her face. His thumbs stroking her cheeks, pulling her closer. And finally, finally he captured her lips with his. His kiss was soft at first. Sweetly touching her lips, loving the feeling of the softness of her mouth. But kissing her innocently wasn't enough. He wanted more, he wanted all of her. He pulled at her lower lip, intensifying their contact.  
His right arm moved downwards to her middle, pulling her closer into him. They stopped their dancing, just standing close into each other's embrace, kissing each other passionately.   
Sam kissed her hungrily. He wanted Rachel to feel how much he wanted her. He deepened their kiss, pulling her even closer. She melted against him, her fingers weaving through his blonde hair. Her heart was hammering against her chest, her whole body felt like it was on flames. Sam kissed Rachel, like she had never been kissed before. It felt so intense, so passionately, so full of lust.  
It felt like an eternity until their lips finally parted to catch a breath of oxygen. Sam searched for Rachel's eyes, to get some confirmation, that that what he was doing was okay. That she wanted him as much as he wanted her. When she touched his cheek and tiptoed to whisper in his ear, he knew the answer.  
"Take me home and show me how much you want me..."

He had never in his life had left a club that fast and hauled a cab. All the way to his apartment he was unable to leave his fingers of her. The feeling was mutual.

They staggered into his apartment, lips locked, not really taking notice of the area. Sam fumbled with the door lock, while pressing Rachel against the door, devouring her lips. When he finally managed to unlock the door, they staggered inside, shutting the door close with a kick.  
They stumbled towards the queen-sized bed , that was located in the corner of the one-bedroom apartment.  
Rachel pushed Sam's heavy leather jacket from his broad shoulders and heard it land on the floor with a loud thumb. On the way to the bed she lost her coat, as well as her stilettos. More and more pieces of clothing got lost on the way, leaving Rachel only in her leather pants and bralette, when she landed on the soft mattress of Sam's bed. Sam was hovering over her, his arms resting on the mattress, his lips locked with hers. She pulled him closer towards him, having the need to feel him. His hands were sneaking up the bare skin of her stomach, leaving a trace of electrifying touches. She was shaking, moving towards his touch.  
What Sam was able to do with her, with a simple touch was nothing another man had ever been able to do. Every touch was like a little explosion of lust. She knew. Rachel knew. She loved this man with all of her heart. She always had and she always would.

"Rach... you sure?" He whispered in between kisses, not wanting to stop to ever touch her again. His lips left hers and moved to her neck. Lovingly he kissed her neck, sucking on it, marking her as his.  
She moaned in pleasure, wanting to feel him even more intensely.  
"Don't stop.." she whimpered. Her hands moved underneath his shirt, feeling his abs. He had always been well defined, but damn - he had a very good physique. She pushed his shirt up, forcing him to let go of her, so he could pull the disturbing piece of fabric over his head. Sam was kneeling over her, letting her enjoy the view of his shirtless chest. Her hand sneaked up his six pack, getting herself into a sitting position, so that she could put her arms around his neck.  
She was kissing his jawline, when she felt his hands moving up her back to the clasp of her bralette. He opened the clasp and removed the black piece of racy lace.  
He took a moment to enjoy the view of her glorious, perky breasts, before pulling her back into a long and deep kiss. His lips moved in a determining way. When he let go of her lips, she felt disappointed, not wanting to miss him for a second.  
"You are beautiful Rachel." Sam said, before pushing her back into the sheets. His right hand moved to her breast, caressing it. His lips went back to work, finding her neck and working his way down to her left breast. A loud moan escaped Rachel's lip when Sam licked her nipple. It was a forceful strike with his tongue, that surprised her and let a wave of passion crash over her. His right hand was massaging her breast, the thumb playing with her nipple.  
His tongue circling the other, leaving the sensitive nub hard. Sam's mouth let go of her breast and wandered further down her stomach until he reached the top of her leather pants. With quick fingers he opened the button and pulled down the zipper. Rachel slightly pushed her hips up, to allow Sam to pull down the tight leather pants. Underneath a pair of lace panties covered her core. It wasn't long until Sam took of his pants and pulled Rachel's right leg up to his hip. She automatically wrapped her legs around his middle, pulling him closer. She could feel his hardness against her core. She shivered. He captured her lips again, grinding his hips against hers. "Sa.. Sam.." she moaned against his mouth. "Yes Rach?" He asked, nibbling the lobe of her ear. "What do you want me to do babe?" He breathed into her ear. "You.. I want.. i want you Sam... all of you" she whispered, using the heels of her feet to pull down his boxers. Sam left out a slight chuckle and pulled down the rest of his underwear. He grabbed Rachel and pulled her up. He turned them, so that she was now straddling his hips. His hands found her hips and pulled down her panties.  
It was a concert of moans and whimpers, when Sam finally entered Rachel. He was slow and careful at first. Their last encounter was laying back so many years, that he was afraid of hurting her.  
When he entered her, he kept still, giving her time to adjust to the length and girth of his member. It wasn't until she slowly started bucking her hips, that he moved against her.  
He was holding her close, his right hand closely moving down the small of her back all the way down to her beautiful behind. He cupped one of the cheeks intensifying the feeling she already had.  
"Sam... Sam... Sam.." Rachel chanted grabbing him, like he was a rock in the water, she was drowning in. She loved this man and she never wanted to let him go anymore.

His lips found hers again, devouring her. He carefully pushed her back into the sheets, her legs wrapping around him. She could feel him deep inside. He pushed into her, retreated completely leaving her empty, just to push into her again and again. He repeated the movement a couple of times and sped up the movements. She could feel him becoming sloppier, as closer he came to his climax. He could feel her tight walls clenching around him, making him feel everything more and more intense.  
"Come for me baby!" Sam moaned into her ear. And that she did. She came hard and loud. With a loud moan she felt the orgasm jolt through her body, leading Sam to follow her closely after.

They were breathing heavily, when Sam rolled off her. He pulled her in his arms kissing her forehead.  
"I wanted to do that for a while" Sam sheepishly admitted, lovingly stroking her arm. Rachel smiled into Sam's chest before answering: "Me too." Sam chuckled happily.  
Rachel snuggled herself into Sam's chest. She sighed happily and content and she knew she would never want to miss this man in her life anymore.  
"Sam..."  
"Hm..?" he mumbled into her hair, closing his eyes.  
"I am glad you came back to me...." She whispered, drifting into sleep.  
"Me too. I'll always come back to you... I love you.." he replied, but she hadn't heard him, as she was already fast asleep. Sam simply hugged her tighter, wrapped a blanket around them and fell asleep himself.

***  
Bright sunrays tickled her awake. She felt warm and content, she felt good. She hadn't had such a good night sleep in a long time. She could feel a heavy arm around her middle, that was keeping her close to the body behind her. She could feel his chest rise and fall evenly, telling her that he was still fast asleep. He was spooning her, his even breath nuzzling her neck.  
Rachel smiled at the thought of the previous night. It had felt right. Sam had made love to her and it was perfect. She shifted in his arms, leaning closer into his chest. She felt his grip tightening, his fingertips stroking her lower abdomen. She felt "him" waking up.  
She moved her hand above Sam's, that was resting on her lower abdomen. She stroked his hand, while starting to slowly rock her hips against his. She could feel his hand moving against her stomach, pressing her closer to him.   
"Good morning..." he mumbled in to her ear, before effortlessly slipping into her. She moaned when she felt him entering her. Her hand moved to his neck and she turned the upper half of her body towards him, so she could capture his lips.  
"Morning.." she mumbled towards his mouth, enjoying the slow and lazy rhythm of their hips . Sam smiled into her kiss. His hand moved from her lower abdomen to her breast, cupping it. His lips leaving hers, moving to her ear, softly nibbling it. She turned her body back, pressing half of her top against the mattress. She was trying to pull him closer towards her, pulling him almost on top of her, just to intensify the friction. He bucked his hips, turning his lazy strokes into deeper and stronger pushes. Her soft moans turned into silent cries. She could feel his mouth moving to her neck kissing it, biting it.  
Pushing into her a couple more times, she came hard and sudden. He followed her a few strokes later, filling her deep inside with his warm seed. He stayed inside of her, pulling her even closer towards him.  
"I could get used to getting up like this..."  
She softly chuckled at his comment. He kissed her shoulder, inhaling her sweet scent.  
They were enjoying each other silently for a while, until Sam finally pulled out of her. She whimpered a bit at the loss of him. He got up and stretched, while Rachel was watching him in all his naked glory.

"Like what you see?" He asked cheekily, winking at her.  
"Very much", she replied, licking her lips. He grinned, bend over to her and kissed her tenderly on the lips.  
"I will hop into the shower and get us some breakfast okay? They have those amazing scones at this place around the corner", he said walking towards the bathroom. She could hear him turn on the water.  
Rachel smiled and lay back into Sam's bed. It smelled like him. She closed her eyes and stretched. She felt amazing, satisfied.  
While Sam was in the shower, Rachel hopped out of bed. She walked to Sam's closet, opened it and pulled out one of his button up shirts. She pressed it to her chest and inhaled his scent before ultimately pulling it over head to put it on. It clung loosely on her petite figure, reaching all the way down to her hips. She willowed the arms up to her elbows and looked into the mirror in front of her. She totally had sex hair. It was all messy and while she was inclined to comb her fingers through it, to make it look more even and clean, she decided against it.  
She wandered around his one-bedroom apartment. It was small but comfy. He a small kitchenette on the right side of the room. He had a television hung across of his bed and a desk with a computer on the right. There wasn't much more in the small space. It wasn't much, but it was enough to be okay with. She figured he had left most of his belongings in Lima, as he was only temporary in the city. It suddenly dawned to her - Sam was only going to stay for a year. He would be gone. There time was limited - once again. Next year around this time Sam wouldn't be here anymore. She didn't want to think about losing him again - not yet at least. That would be an issue, she would think about another time.  
Rachel sighed. She took the couple steps towards Sam's kitchenette, found the coffeemaker and put it on. Coffee - that is what she needed now. She was lost in thoughts, looking at the coffeemaker, how the dark drops evenly fell into the glass pot. She didn't hear Sam walking over to her. Jeans sitting low on his hips, little droplet of water rolling down his chest. His hair was towel dried, said towel hanging around his shoulders.  
He wrapped his arms around her from behind, placing a kiss on her neck.  
"You look so sexy in my shirt.. maybe I should just throw you over my shoulder and take you right back to bed instead of getting breakfast." "Maybe you should", Rachel replied cheekily, turning in his embrace to wrap her arms around his neck. She kissed him tenderly and smiled at him. "Woman don't tease me!" Sam groaned nipping her lips playfully. She laughed into his mouth and shoved him lightly. "Get me some food Mister!" "Yes, mam!" Sam mock-saluted, stole one last kiss and grabbed a t-shirt. He grabbed his leather jacket from the ground, where they had carelessly left it the night before, checked for his wallet and left to get some breakfast.

***

Sam and Rachel spent a blissful weekend together, which mostly meant staying in bed, having sex and simply enjoying each other's company. They had stayed at Sam's place until the light afternoon of Sunday, when Rachel had to leave to her place. Sam didn't want her to go, but he knew she had to go home and see her son. She had put on back her leather pants and was looking for her shoes, when Sam hold up her bralette. She was not wearing her blouse again, but rather decided to wear one of Sam's shirts.  
"Don't you want to take this home, babe?" He asked, winking at her. She slightly blushed and took the piece of lace from him. He laughed at her expression and captured her in his arms. "I will miss you!" He said and kissed her.  
"Why don't you come with me? Stay at my place. You are there anyways almost every day and Dalton will be excited to see you." She said, stroking his cheek lovingly.  
"You sure, you don't mind?" He asked.  
"Of course not. I want you there, with me. With us." She said. "Also, you haven't seen Blaine in a while, did you? You are his best friend, stay, talk, catch up and afterwards come to me." He smiled at her and nodded.  
"If you insist", he said laughingly and grabbed a bag to throw in some clothes.  
When they both were ready, they walked towards the subway. While walking next to each other, he grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers. She beamed at him brightly.  
It felt so good being with Sam, so right.

When they arrived at Rachel's house, they quickly dropped Sam's bag and then walked to Blaine's. Shortly after they rang the bell Blaine opened it, Dalton in his arms.

"Mummy! Sammy!" Dalton brightly exclaimed, his little arms reaching out towards Rachel.  
"Hi baby!" Rachel replied, embracing her son and kissing him softly. "Did you enjoy your weekend with dad?" She asked and the little prince nodded encouragingly. "Hey Rach, hey Sam!" Blaine greeted and waved them inside. "Hi buddy! Blaine, good to see you!" Sam said, when he entered the house.  
They settled in the spacious living room. The little whirlwind excitingly babbling about his exciting weekend with Blaine. He clearly enjoyed his time with his dad and Rachel could see, that Dalton needed this. He needed his dad and he would need his papi too.

"Did you hear something from Kurt?" Sam asked, putting a hand on Blaine's shoulder. Blaine shook his head in defeat ."No. He didn't call."  
"I am sorry man. You guys will be alright, I am sure!" Sam replied, squeezing his friends shoulder. "I hope you are right."

They stayed and talked for a while. They had dinner together and finally Rachel decided to bring her son into bed. He would stay at her place, so she scooped him into his arms and walked over to her house. Blaine had kissed her and Dalton goodbye. Sam decided to stay a little while longer with Blaine. He knew his friend needed to talk.

***

"So tell me, what is going on between the two of you`" Blaine asked.  
"I love her", Sam replied honestly. Blaine smiled knowingly. "That is more than obvious Sam. The way you look at her. They way you have always looked at her.. only a fool wouldn't see what you are feeling for her."  
"You knew?" "Of course I did, you are my best friend. Since high school you were pining for her. You waited through her relationships with Finn, with Brody, with Jesse - you helped her repair her heart, after Finn's passing. You loved her for such a long time. I can see it every time you look at her. You deserve to be happy."  
"I am." Sam said honestly. "She stayed the weekend at my place. We danced, we laughed. We kissed. We had sex. Lots of it." He grinned to himself and Blaine mirrored his smile.  
"I am happy for you Sam - but TMI! Seriously too much information."  
The friends laughed, enjoying the lightness between them. Blaine was happy for them and it was good hearing some positive developments.  
"Sorry man. But she is truly amazing." "Yes she is. She is unique, that Rachel Berry. And Dalton of course."  
"He is. I love that little munchkin", Sam said, a look into his friends pained face, however made him realize that while Blaine was truly happy for him and Rachel, he had a deep sitting fear. A fear of losing Dalton to Sam. An adoptive father was never a real father - at least not in the biological sense. Blaine felt inferior.  
"But Blaine, I hope you know that I would never try to take Dalton away from you. I love him and Rachel and I would love for us to be a family, but you will always be his dad. I want you to know, that you will always be a part of Daltons life, you will always be his dad - no matter what happens. I would never want to get inbetween you and him."  
Blaine looked at his friend with tearful eyes. He was greatful for Sam's word. His hidden fear was losing his son, but listening to Sam, he knew his friend would never let that happen.  
"Thank you Sam!" Was all Blaine said. "You want to hug?" Sam said, knowing his best friend. Blaine laughed and hugged him.

***  
Much later this evening Sam knocked on Rachel's front door. He and Blaine had talked for a long time and shared a couple of beers. Sam hadn't realized how much he had missed his best friend. When they were still back in Lima they were always hanging out together and had each other's back. They were still close, but occasional phone calls just couldn't make up for always being around each other. Sam was glad though, that he and Blaine were able to talk as they always used to do. Their friendship was meant to last.  
"Sam - hi" Rachel said, when she opened the door. "Hey, sorry I am so late." He said and walked passed her into the hallway.  
"Don't worry about it. Did you have a good time with Blaine?" "Yes, it was really good catching up with him. Back in Lima we saw each other all the time, but since he moved to New York, we sometimes don't talk in month." Sam said, a bit of regret in his voice.  
They had walked into the living room, where Rachel was sitting before enjoying a glass of wine. She got a second glass for Sam and poured him a glass of white wine.  
"Thanks", he flashed her a smile, when she offered him the wine glass. They clinked glasses and sipped their wine.  
"I am glad you two had a chance to catch up. Blaine really missed you. He really needed a friend here." She said and put her glass back on the table. She moved in to a comfortable sitting position, her hand resting on Sam's knee. His fingertips were moving onto her hand, softly stroking the back of her hand. Light touches on the back of her hand, left Rachel with a ticklish feeling. He intertwined her hands and led their hands to his mouth. He placed soft butterfly kisses on the back of her hand. She was watching his moves intensely. Her heart was fluttering in her chest. She felt a warm and fuzzy feeling in her core, that spread through her whole body.  
"I think he was afraid of me taking his place", Sam said, his free hand playing with her dark curls, twirling them between his fingers.  
"What do you mean?" She asked, scooting closer to him, wanting to feel his radiating heat.  
"I think he was afraid that I would take his place as Dalton's dad. I mean I am his biological father and I want to know him. I want to spend time with him. I want to spend time with you. Both of you. Rach, I want to be with you." Sam stopped, staring at her intensely. He would pour his heart to her and he hoped she would accept his heart and treasure it. His fingers stopped playing with her hair and moved to her cheek. Cupping it, thumb stroking her jawline..  
"I told Blaine that he would always be Dalton's dad. I would never want to take that from Blaine. He loves that little boy with all his heart. I told him that yes I want to be here too, I want to be a father for Dalton, but Blaine he would also always be Dalton's dad. Dalton is one lucky kid, having three dads and one absolutely gorgeous mom." Rachel leaned into Sam's touch, squeezing their intertwined hands. "I love you Rach."  
Her heart jumped, when he heard his confession. A bright smile appeared on her face. She kissed him. Her lips were soft and tender at first, quickly deepening the kiss. Her breathing got heavier and she grabbed the collar of his shirt to pull him closer.  
His lower lip tucked hers, his hand shifting to her waist. His fingers played with the seam of her shirt, lightly touching the exposed skin.  
When they broke their kiss, their foreheads touching, her breathing slowly calming down.  
"I love you too."

***

Time passed fast. It had been three months since Sam came to New York. He and Rachel were officially dating for two of them. While Sam had kept his apartment, he unofficially moved in with his family - with Rachel and Dalton. He had his own drawer and closet space in Rachel's walking closet and his products got a space in the master bathroom. He read Dalton almost every night a bedtime story and helped him getting ready in the morning. He loved spending time with his son. He loved playing with him, reading to him, simply seeing him grow up. Even more so, he loved watching Rachel. She was gorgeous, she was caring, to him she was absolutely perfect.

When he left in the mornings to go to university, Rachel woke up with him and prepared breakfast and coffee for him. She would talk to him and walk him to the door, while he would steal a couple of kisses before leaving. He knew Rachel would teach classes three times a week at NYADA and during this time Dalton would either be with Blaine or at the day care center. Sometimes Sam would pick him up and they would spend the afternoon at the playground.  
In the evening they would cook dinner together, often including Blaine. After dinner Rachel would bathe Dalton and get him ready for bed. Sam would tug him in and read him a story. Sam like this little ritual, it felt right. It felt domestic.

When he and Rachel were lying in bed, his arms surrounding her, her head on his chest, he felt grateful for what he had. He was happy. But within all this bliss, there was one shadow. Kurt. He still hadn't return, let alone called (well he had twice, but within three months, that was quite worrisome). He knew that Blaine suffered terribly under the "loss" of his husband. Not only Blaine suffered though, Dalton missed his Papi terribly and even Rachel missed Kurt. It was odd how much the feeling of losing someone, could make you want them back - no matter how angry you had been at someone. Anger faded, but love lingered. 

****

It was Friday afternoon and Rachel, Sam and Dalton were at a nearby playground. Rachel was sitting on a nearby bench observing Sam und Dalton, who were very concentrated while building a sandcastle - or at least trying to.  
Rachel was waving towards them, when Dalton looked up. He was giving her a bright smile, before concentrating back on his construction.

"Mommy!" Dalton said, while running towards her, closely followed by Sam.  
"Hey baby!" She replied, squatting and opening her arms to catch her little whirlwind in a hug.  
"Mommy! Look Mommy! A sandy castle!" He pointed excitingly at the sand construction, he and Sam had built. "Yes, I can see it! It looks amazing." She placed a kiss on her sons forehead. His eyes were twinkling with joy. "You did a great job! Did you do this all by yourself?" She asked.  
"Daddy helped!" Dalton replied.  
Rachel gasped. "Da- Daddy?" She asked. Her son nodded encouragingly. "Yes Daddy!" He replied and pointed at Sam.  
Rachel was speechless. She was looking between her son and Sam. She could see Sam's eyes getting teary and she just had to smile. Wordlessly she stepped closer to Sam, who instinctively put his arms around his girlfriend and his son.  
"Mommy, Daddy why you sad?" Dalton asked confused, when he realized his parents teary eyes. Rachel, emotional as she was had a joyous tear rolling down her cheek and Sam tried very hard not to cry out of happiness. Dalton placed his little hand at his mother's cheek and bend closer to her, to place a smack on her tear. "Don't cry mommy", he simply said, earning a bright smile from Rachel. "Mommy's not sad baby. Mommy is just happy", she assured her son kissing him back. Dalton looked at her confused, before shrugging his little shoulders and turning to Sam. He reached for Sam's face and placed a kiss on Sam's nose. "Daddy no cry either", he said. "I love you buddy!" Sam simply said, wiping his hand quickly over his eyes. "Love you too!"

That was it. Rachel couldn't stop the tears. She was just so touched by the scene in front of her. Her baby boy was just so adorable. How could such a little heart just have so much love? She couldn't help herself but hug her son tightly, while leaning into Sam. Sam was placing a kiss on her head and embraced them tightly. He couldn't understand how he deserved so much luck.  
If he hadn't realized it before, he knew now this was where he belonged. This was where he wanted to stay. This was his home, here with the woman he loved and this perfect little wonder they made.

A little while later Sam and Rachel were on their way home. Dalton was walking between them, holding both their hands. Occasionally they lifted him and swaying him forward. He shrieked in glee.  
They were laughing and giggling freely, when they finally arrived at their home.  
Blaine was sitting on the top of the stairs, looking up when he heard them in the distance. He smiled at the picture in front of them.  
"DADA!" Dalton exclaimed and run towards Blaine, when Rachel and Sam let go of his hands. Sam caught Rachel's hand instead and walked with her towards Blaine and Dalton, who jumped into Blaine's arms. The little whirlwind was such a bright and happy spirit.

"Hey munchkin! Hey guys!" Blaine said, when Rachel and Sam made their way to him.  
"Sorry we are a little late", Rachel said apologetically. Dalton was going to stay with Blaine for the weekend and was supposed to be at his place at 5pm. It was a little after 5:30pm, when Sam, Rachel and Dalton had finally arrived.

"Don't worry about it. I actually have something to tell you." Blaine was looking a bit uneasy. He was biting his lower lip, something he only did when he was nervous.  
"What's wrong?" Sam asked, eyebrows pulled together in worry.  
"Kurt is back." 

***

The silence was terrible. After Blaine told them Kurt had returned, they went to meet him. The last few minutes they were sitting in the living room an awkward silence between them.  
Kurt hadn't seen Dalton, as Rachel had asked Sam to take Dalton to their home and make him dinner.

"So.. you are back.." Rachel finally broke the silence and looked at Kurt. She wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to jump up the couch and pull her friend in a tight hug. She didn't want to fight with Kurt anymore. She had missed her friend, but she was also still hurt.   
"I am back." He answered. He looked good, his skin was slightly tanned, he seemed relaxed.   
"Rachel I am sorry." He finally said looking at her earnestly. "I truly am. What I said was out of line. I needed time to process everything. But I shouldn't have said what I did. I love Dalton. I love you and I love Blaine and I want to come home." Blaine squeezed his husbands hand, smiling at him. They had clearly made up earlier and Rachel was glad for them.  
She sighed and looked at Kurt. Yes she had every right to be angry and yes Kurt did mess up, but she didn't want to fight anymore. She had missed him and in her heart she had forgiven him back then, when he had called her.  
She got up and walked towards Kurt. "I missed you", she simply stated and embraced him in a hug. Kurt, startled at first, hugged her back. "I am so sorry Diva", he whispered in her ear.  
"Me too." She whispered back placing a kiss on his cheek.  
"I can't watch this - without being included!" Blaine said and put his arms around both of them. They group hugged for a while.

"Can I... would you mind if I see him?" Kurt asked carefully.  
Rachel had to think about Kurt's request for a moment, until she finally nodded.  
"He is with Sam next door." "Sam?" Kurt asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you guys together?"  
"Yes", Rachel replied sheepishly. "They finally made it hon. Took them long enough" Blaine chuckled.  
"Indeed. I am happy for you Rach, you deserve it." "Thank you Kurt!"

When they entered the front door, Sam was sitting with Dalton in the den. They were watching an episode of Scooby-Doo, singing the theme song together, that was just airing.

"Hey guys", Rachel greeted them.  
"Hey pumpkin", Kurt said. At the tone of his voice, Dalton turned his head to look at Kurt. His face turned from confused to excitement to pure joy within seconds.  
"PAPI!!" He exclaimed, jumping to his feet and running as fast as his little legs carried him towards Kurt. Kurt knelt on the floor and opened his arms to catch the little boy in his arms.  
"Hi there pumpkin. How are you? I missed you!" Kurt said pulling his son in a tight hug.  
"Papi! I miss you too!" Dalton replied happily. He put his little arms around Kurt's neck and hugged him tight. Rachel could see the tears in Kurt's eyes while he was hugging his son. She could see how much he had missed the little boy. How much he loved him despite everything and how sorry he was.  
She knew they were going to be okay.  
Rachel allowed Blaine and Kurt to take Dalton with them and spend time with him. She knew Kurt was eternally grateful for this opportunity. He had a lot to catch up too. He was glad that they manage to pass this terrible fight and were able to move on. Kurt had accepted that Dalton was not the child he had wanted him to be, but he had also realized, that Dalton was the child he called his own. Dalton was the child he loved and that wouldn't change. The little boy had placed himself deep inside all of their hearts and he would remain there for eternity.

***  
Three years had passed since the day Sam had come back into Rachel's life. A lot had happened since then. She and Jesse had managed to overcome their difficulties and were able to remain friends, after their divorce finalized two years ago.  
In fact they were able to work together again, when Rachel decided it was time to return to Broadway. He was working as producer on the musical version of Disney's "Frozen". Rachel was playing the part of "Elsa".

Sam had finished his course at NYU and graduated. While he hated the city in the past, he found a reason to stay. Also living in Brooklyn helped a lot, as this place was not as crowded as Manhattan. Sam found a job as football coach at a local high school and was even able to establish a glee club. He loved his job. Teaching was his passion and with a few pointers of Mr. Shue he was able to do an amazing job.

Blaine and Kurt were still very active on Broadway, with Blaine actually working together with Rachel. He played "Kristof". Kurt on the other hand managed to score a role in a revival of Cats.  
Their lives were good. So good, that Blaine and Kurt had decided to adopt another child.

Dalton was still equally spending his time with either Blaine and Kurt or Sam and Rachel. He was a happy child, who had four doting parents.

It was Friday night, when Sam took Rachel out on a date. He had asked her to put on a nice dress. He had cleaned up nicely, wearing grey slacks and a white button down shirt underneath a grey suit jacket.  
"You look handsome" Rachel said, when she was coming down the stairs. Even after all those years she still took his breath away. She was wearing a tight, purple a-line dress. The top was covered in lace and hugged her curves perfectly. She had paired her outfit with a pair of golden stilettos.  
Sam let out a whistle, making Rachel laugh.  
"Wow... you look gorgeous babe. How did I deserve such a beauty?" Walking up to him, she flashed him a smile, before tugging him on his collar to press a kiss on his lips.  
"Hm... I should compliment you more often", he said with a wink, before placing his hand on the small of her back. He opened the door and led them outside.  
In front of their house a horse carriage was already waiting for them.

"Milady", Sam said, walking towards the carriage, nodding to the coachman and opening the door.   
"Sam... what.. what is this?" Rachel asked in disbelief. The carriage was beautiful. Red roses were draped around the carriage and a cooler of champagne was placed in the middle of the little table within the carriage.  
"This is the start of a wonderful date", he simply replied. They sat down into the carriage and Sam poured the champagne into two flutes. While he was handing a champagne flute to Rachel, the coachman set the carriage in motion.  
"This is beautiful Sam, thank you!" Rachel said taking Sam's hand in hers.   
The carriage brought them to a little park. When it stopped, Sam jumped out of the carriage and helped Rachel getting out. He took her hand and led her through the park. She was watching in awe, as the way lighted up. Tons of light bulb suddenly enlightened the way leading them to a small table close to a little sea.  
"Sam... this is... wow I don't know what to say", Rachel said, taking in the scenery. It was downright romantic (maybe even a bit cheesy, but hell she loved every moment of it).  
Sam offered Rachel a seat, which she gladly took. He had prepared a three course dinner, which he had placed in a picnic basket close-by.  
During their dinner they were chatting and laughing. Sam's fingers searched for Rachel's, lovingly caressing her hand.  
After the dinner, Sam had gotten up, offering a hand to Rachel.  
"Dance with me?" He simply asked.  
"There is no music..." she replied, nevertheless taking his hand and getting up.  
"I know a wonderful singer..." he said placing his left hand on the small of her back. He softly started humming the lyrics of Michael Bolton's "When a man loves a woman" in her ear. She giggled. She leaned her head against his chest. She loved listening to his voice. He had always been a great singer and she had always enjoyed singing with him, but listening to him, dedicating a song to her was something special. His hot breath was tickling her ear, while he was continuing singing the lyrics. She could feel her whole body shivering. He twisted her in his arms, pulling her back towards him. His hand moving to her stomach, his mouth still hovering over her ear and singing the lyrics of the song. His hips moved against hers, swaying with the rhythm.  
When he stopped singing, he pressed a kiss on her ear.  
"I love you.." he whispered. Her eyes were closed, but when she heard his words she turned her face upwards to look at him. Her hand went to his neck, pulling him down to her. "I love you..." she mumbled before closing the distance between their lips. It was a tender kiss. Soft and sweet and it still made her feel butterflies.  
They were swaying in a silent rhythm, when Sam swung her around again. They came to a sudden halt and Sam just looked at her. He gazed into her eyes. "Rachel.." he started. She was so beautiful. Her kind and caring eyes, her long, dark locks, her beautiful soul. He knew this was the woman he wanted to stay with. The woman he wanted to spend of his life with. She was the one. She was the one that mattered most.  
"Rach..." he said again. When he bent down on one knee, Rachel knew what was happening. "Yes!" She exclaimed, before Sam could even ask her.  
He chuckled. "Babe... you have to let me ask first" he said. He grabbed into the pocket of his suit and presented a teal coloured box.  
"Rachel Barbara Berry, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" When he opened the box a golden princess cut ring was looking at her.  
"Yes! YES! YES! A thousand times yes!" She was pulling him up and fell right into his arms. She was so giddy from happiness, she couldn't stop smiling. She kissed him passionately, throwing her arms around his neck. He pulled her close and swung her in excitement.

When he finally put the ring on her finger, she simply beamed at him. Sam captured her lips once more and simply said: "I love you!" 

***  
A year later Rachel Barbara Evans was standing on the large balcony of the summer beach house she and her family was staying at. From the balcony she could see Kurt and Blaine playing in the water with Dalton and little Rose "Rosie" Elphaba Anderson-Hummel.

She closed her eyes and inhaled the scent of the ocean. It smelt like salt and sand. A smile crept to her face when she heard footsteps approaching.  
She leaned into the warm body, that embraced her from behind.  
"Hello Mrs. Evans", he said, nuzzling her neck. "Hello Mr. Evans", she replied happily.  
He smiled at her, his hand softly caressing the very round and pregnant belly of his wife.


End file.
